Pensionable work query?

[gasmansteve]

Hi all
I participate in an out of hours standby rota which has never been pensionable even though it is part of my contractual duties. It has been suggested by collegues that if this work is part of our contracted duties then it must become pensionable as and when we do it. If it isn`t part of our contractual duties then we could opt out of the rota which is a pain in the butt anyway. Our union guys are unsure how to proceed as the implications are immense. Anyone have any experience with contracted/pensionable work like this?. Should any/all essential work you do as part of your job be pensionable??.
Cheers
Steve

 

[Nigel]

Hi Steve
The company I have just retired from took years to include shift pay into our pensionable pay but they did backdate it when they agreed to the union pay demand,
My understanding is that anything over the standard week becomes negotiable with a private company pension,

Cheers Nigel

 

[gasmansteve]

Thanks Nigel
That may well be the caveat used by the company not to do it in the first place, will have to pursue this further I think.
Thanks again
Steve

 

[Anonymous]

even though it is part of my contractual duties.....


then we could opt out of the rota which is a pain in the butt anyway.....
Steve

If it is contracted duties, then you cannot simply pull-out without facing disciplinary procedures. Pensionable? no idea

 

[cambournepete]

You need to check what your contract says. This should clearly state what parts of your pay are pensionable. Unless it says that the out of hours work is pensionable then it probably isn't.
You might be able to pay extra in yourself of course...

 

[gasmansteve]

I suppose my main query is if its an essential part of your job and by that I don`t mean stuff like overtime which is voluntary then it seems to me that it must be pensionable. Maybe like Nigel said if its over and above a `normal` week (whatever that is as I still have to do standby?) then its negotiable with private pension schemes. As someone approaching 36yrs with the company you can understand my interest :wink: .
Regards

 

[Jake]

It depends on the rules of the pension scheme - one of the ways that companies try to shave their contributions is to mess around with the definition of pensionable pay. It is, apparently, rare for pensionable pay to be the same as gross pay (including overtime, etc)*. But it depends on how the scheme is set up; I think you'll need to get a hold of the Deed of the pension scheme to find out the answer - you have a right to see it (I think you might have to pay a small charge for a copy).

*I wouldn't have a clue about any of this normally, but by a weird coincidence I happen to be doing a pensions case at the moment where the fact that pensionable pay was gross pay affects the amount of damages claimed by the other side, and our pensions expert witness says it is very unusual.

 

[dennyk]

It is possible to pay additional monies into an AVC ( Additional Voluntary Contribution) does your employer have an AVC scheme running within the pension rules, if not make enquiries.

The company I worked for did not have that facility, but through negotiations they set one up, the result was I now receive a bigger pension. It is certainly worth making enquiries to the pension trustees.