PENSION UPDATE - 26 OCTOBER 2005

PENSION UPDATE - 26 OCTOBER 2005The General Secretary today issued a letter to members regarding the considerable progress that has been made on the future of teachers' pensions following recent talks in London.You can view the General Secretary's letter and the "Framework Principles" here.The Association will be asked to ratify the principles on 8 November in London. Our Salaries Committee will meet on 4 November to determine our stance.Your opportunity to express your views about this is now. You can…

Its Your Money - Key Points

KEY POINTS • Government proposal to raise minimum pension age from 60 to 65. • From 2006 all new entrants would be on the 65 retirement age. • For teachers currently in service under age 50 (today) each year worked from 2013 will only “pay out” at age 65. Years already worked by 2013 will still be payable at 60. 4 examples. Teacher A - Age 50 (2003) Service to 2003 = 25 years Further service to 2013 = 10…

Its Your Money

The Association seeks the help of its members, and indeed any concerned teachers, to protest to MPs and MSPs about the Government proposals to increase the pension age from 60 to 65. The Association urges its members to write to their MP and MSP, and a sample letter and "key points" guide are available for download below. Whilst simply downloading the sample letter and sending this off would be good, it would be much more helpful for members to use…

"IT'S YOUR MONEY" CAMPAIGN

"IT'S YOUR MONEY" CAMPAIGN The Association seeks the help of its members, and indeed any concerned teachers, to protest to MPs and MSPs about the Government proposals to increase the pension age from 60 to 65. The Association urges its members to write to their MP and MSP, and a sample letter and "key points" guide are available for download from this page.

STUC PENSION RALLY, SATURDAY 19 JUNE 2004

STUC PENSION RALLY, SATURDAY 19 JUNE 2004 Members of SSTA lent their support to the STUC Pensions Rally on Saturday 19 June in Edinburgh. They came from various districts of Scotland to brave the very wet and windy conditions in Edinburgh that day to show the Association's determination to support this cause. The DFES have published details of the proposed changes the to the Teachers Pension Scheme. on their website. Further detail will be given in due course.

MODERNISATION OF THE TEACHERS' PENSION SCHEME (TPS):

MODERNISATION OF THE TEACHERS' PENSION SCHEME (TPS): A PROGRESS REPORT ”” JULY 2004 Over the last six months or so, a considerable amount of progress has been made on the review of the TPS. Many aspects of the Scheme have been examined by the Teachers' Pension Review Group (made up of representatives from DfES, the Government Actuary's Department, teacher unions and employer associations as well as opposite numbers covering the Scottish and Northern Ireland teachers' schemes). The TPRG have now…

SSTA WARNING ON CHILD SAFETY DANGER

SSTA WARNING ON CHILD SAFETY DANGER The Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association today warned that there is a real danger of chaos if the Scottish Parliament does not proceed urgently with the Bill designed to improve child protection (Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scotland) Bill). “We are becoming increasingly concerned that the Bill will not make sufficient progress to pass into law before the dissolution of Parliament ahead of the election in May” said David Eaglesham, General Secretary. “It is vital that…

SSTA EXPRESSES CONCERN ABOUT PROGRESS REPORT ON TEACHING

SSTA EXPRESSES CONCERN ABOUT PROGRESS REPORT ON TEACHING The Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association (SSTA) has commented on the report published today by HMIe (Schools Inspectors) entitled “Teaching Scotland's Children.” “Whilst we welcome the many positive findings from the report, it contains several simplistic and unwarranted assumptions,” said David Eaglesham, General Secretary of the SSTA. “The report states that the Agreement between Teachers, employers and the Scottish Executive has been by and large successfully delivered in all of its aspects. Recruitment…

CENSUS OF NEW TEACHERS REQUIRED

CENSUS OF NEW TEACHERS REQUIRED The Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association today called on the Scottish Executive to undertake a rolling census of new entrants to initial teacher education and to teaching service. “We need to have a more comprehensive picture of what is happening to the supply of teachers in Scotland,” said David Eaglesham, General Secretary of the SSTA. “At present, we do not adequately track the destinations of all those who enter training for teaching service. We need to…

WARNING ON TEACHER SHORTAGE

WARNING ON TEACHER SHORTAGE The Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association today issued a warning to all local authorities about the effects of the treatment of cover teachers on long-term shortages. “We continue to be notified of attempts by some local authorities to implement ‘Burger King' style contracts for cover teachers, leading to huge differences in pay for teachers doing almost identical hours,” said David Eaglesham, SSTA General Secretary. “Our view is, and always has been, that cover teachers should be employed…