Final Salary Pension Schemes

[squeaker]

My company (Monarch) is about to stop the final salary pension for new joiners.
Does your company still have such a scheme?
Would you go on strike to protect it?
If you were thinking of joining an airline, how important would the type of pension offered be to you?
Answers on a postcard please, (or here!)

[VORTIME]

What is this pathetic attitude of going on strike whenever a disagreement occurs. You simply **** up your airline and definitely make management-staff communications a competitive environ. But you're a pilot, the world owes you six-figures, car & suburban house - so yes - go on strike.

If conditions aren't what you want, it's a free market - get another job. If you can't get another one, appreciate that maybe there is a reason for the lack of demand and accept the terms offered when YOU joined the company.

The only genuine reason for a strike is if the remuneration and/or conditions become less than those specified in your contract when you joined in real terms.

VT

[Stampe]

Britannia is I believe now the only substantial UK airline offering a final salary pension scheme to new joiners.Continuance of a final salary pension scheme for new entrants was an important part of this years pay deal.Having all pilots as part of the same pension scheme (albeit with differing benefits subject to date of joining) was considered vital to the future cohisiveness of the pilot workforce.We live in difficult times but remember adequate final salary pension provision is vital, nothing more than deferred pay really!!.So called money purchase schemes at the level of company contribution offered in this country in reality are nothing more than company sponsored saving schemes, all the risk lies with the individual.:rolleyes:

[Wet Power]

This is not a strike issue.

The cc representatives did their best to point out the gains of keeping the FS scheme.

I can fully understand the company's desire to limit their potential losses but then again it was their decision to take a pension holiday a few years ago.

There were also very good reasons why they should have held on to it for new joiners (it is a long term investment and there is no reason why growth rates could not be a lot higher again in 10 years time). Britannia management recognised this.

My view is that it is a bad (long term) decision by management but an easy (short term) decision.

[willoman]

Fully agree with Stampe - if a company ends up with two types of pension scheme ( applied to a particular group of employees ) then in 5 -10 years time, when the 'money purchase' members exceed the 'final salary' members, there will be a distinct lack of interest from the new guys when management starts playing around with salary/pension related matters. It creates an unbalanced playing field between pilots. Well done Britannia ! As Stampe states, the word pension is a misnoma - it is deferred pay.

[BUSTACLOUD]

vortime

calm down a little.

Squeaker was mererly posing a few questions.
The protection of the final salary pension scheme or "Deferred" pay for many within an established airline can be and should be something that is extremely important and should not just be allowed to be taken away because the company is not going to make its financial targets for share holders or management not receiving their hefty bonuses.

Vortime if your airline has never had a final salary pension you will not understand what has or could be lost.As rightly mentioned most airlines are riding the backs of the SEP11 wave and crying poor while still making record profits.

By allowing the company to get away with stopping the final salary pension scheme to new joiners is simply a very long term view of dividing and eventually conquering the workforce on pension related issues as time goes on.

hats off to britannia for being able to hold on to the pension and hope that in years to come the world economy recovers so that future retirees can enjoy their deferred pay in peace.:O :O

PS we might be in a "free market "but unfortunately we are tied in to our various companies by shackles known as seniority lists which are NECESSARY EVILS in our line of business so do not use the words FREE MARKET loosley when talking about our profession.

Cheers