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PCS members at parliament to protect redundancy pay

7 September 2010

PCS members are protesting outside parliament today as MPs debate the second reading of the superannuation bill.

The bill proposes massive cuts to civil servants’ redundancy payments under the civil service compensation scheme. 

More than 130 MPs have signed a parliamentary motion encouraging the new government to seek a negotiated settlement after the union’s successful High Court challenge to the previous government’s plans to cut redundancy terms. 
 
The High Court ruled in May that the Labour government had acted unlawfully when it unilaterally introduced a new compensation scheme that cut payments by up to a third. 
 
The union is pleased that Labour MPs are being urged to support an amendment that would strike out the bill on the basis that the government has not properly consulted staff and the unions, and the plans do nothing to protect to the lowest paid. 
 
The changes would make it easier and cheaper to cut tens of thousands of civil service jobs and privatise more of our public services.  
PCS members taking part in the demonstration expressed their anger at the proposals:  
 
Chris Dando said: "I feel very strongly about the campaign to protect our redundancy pay. We will not sit back and watch our terms and conditions being ripped up in front of our eyes. Today's protest is a chance to show the government we mean business."  
 
KC Jones said: “This is our most important dispute in years. We are campaigning to defend our jobs, livelihoods and the public services we all rely on. I feel proud to be part of this action and would urge all our members to get actively involved in PCS’s campaign.” 
 
H O'Harney said: "What this government is attempting to achieve by changing the law with regards to our redundancy payments is profoundly disturbing, morally repugnant and offensive. It is clear it is about sacrificing public servants’ jobs to the private sector on the cheap."
 
Dave Plummer said: “It is vitally important as many members as possible show we won’t have them mucking about with our redundancy pay. We beat them once, we can beat them again.”