ill health retirement pension

scotgaz

just wondered if anyone would know this.
ive been given diagnosis from consultant specialist after year ot test and being off work sick, not terminal but lifelong, no cure, treatment is managing symptoms to slow deterioration. has also said i'm not capable of working at any job again, due to condition and side effects of meds. explained this to line manager, as an occupational health assessment is soon and i wanted ill health retirement to be discussed. she has said that she will not even propose it as an option as its her job to get me back to work. and if she refused again at final stage i would just be dismissed. can she do this? is there a way to apply myself? not a small company, part of a city's council

System

Hi

I cannot say what the policy is for your council, but somewhere HR will have one, or the LGPS people and DEMAND a copy.

If you were forced back to work and re-deployed to a job that was "easier" then this may count as a tier 2 ill health.

If you can find out more about the policy please post again.

mgdavid

Who is 'she'? If the line manager, it's not up to her. You need to be speaking with HR / personnel. Are you a member of a union or staff association? If so, talk to them as well.

System

Hi

This is an OLD document, but it may give a clue as to what could happen.


Ill Health Retirement (LGPS)

Am I eligible for ill health retirement?
What is the process for assessing capability?
What are the ill-health retirement benefits?
How are ill health benefits calculated?
What if I have reduced my hours due to ill health before being granted ill health retirement?
What if I had my pay reduced because of sickness before being granted ill health retirement?
Will my benefits be reduced as they are being paid early?
What happens when ill health is granted?
What happens if ill health retirement is not granted?
What happens if I am unhappy with the decision about my ill health retirement application?
Where can I find further information?

Am I eligible for ill health retirement?
To be eligible for early pension benefits due to ill health you must:

· Have at least three months pensionable service, or have equivalent transferred rights from another pension scheme; and

· be certified by an independent occupational health physician as being permanently incapable of performing the duties of your post or any comparable employment on grounds of ill health or infirmity of mind or body. “Permanently incapable” means that you will, more likely than not, be incapable, until, at the earliest, your 65th birthday.

The independent occupational health physician will also indicate the likelihood of you being capable of employment in the future. This will determine which of the 3 tiers of ill-health pension will be paid (see ‘How are my benefits calculated?’)

What is the process for assessing capability?
In most cases, your manager, HR and Occupational Health (Txxxxxxx) will explore a number of options to support your return to work before retirement on the grounds of ill health is considered. You are also likely to have consulted your own doctor to get his/her opinion.

When ill health retirement is being considered, a meeting will be arranged with your manager to discuss the eligibility requirements described above. Your manager will also explain that if the application for early pension benefits on the grounds of ill health were refused, ending your contract of employment on grounds of incapability would automatically be considered.

At this stage, if you feel you may have to retire because of ill health, you should complete the ‘Early Pension Benefits due to ill health’ application form and return it to the HR Advisory Service team who will send the form to Txxxxxxx to begin the process.

Txxxxx Physician review
Txxxx’s Physician will review existing medical evidence to establish if it supports the case for ill health retirement. If additional medical information is required, you may be requested to attend an appointment to see Txxxxxxxx’s Physician and/or your GP/Consultant may be asked to provide a report.

[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT] Independent Occupational Health Physician review

If there is sufficient medical evidence to support the case for ill health retirement, it will be referred to another Occupational Health Physician who has had no prior involvement with your case and is therefore independent, for a second opinion.

They will review the medical evidence and may request further reports from your GP/Consultant. When a decision has been taken, the Early Pension Benefits form will be returned to HR Advisory Service to notify them whether the eligibility criteria for early pension benefits due to ill health has been met and, if so, the likelihood of you being capable of employment in the future.

What are the ill-health retirement benefits?
Your ill health retirement benefits will be based upon the likelihood of you being capable of employment in the future. This will be determined by the independent occupational health physician and will inform the decision on which of the 3-tiers of ill-health your pension will be paid.

Tier 1
If you are totally incapacitated and will not be able to undertake gainful employment* before your normal retirement date, then your benefits will be based on your accrued rights plus an enhancement on your prospective service up to your normal retirement date.
Tier 2
If you can not undertake gainful employment* within a reasonable period of leaving Local Government employment, but you may be able at some date in the future before your normal retirement date, then their benefits will be based on your accrued rights plus an increase of 25% of your prospective service up to their normal retirement date.
Tier 3
If you can not undertake gainful employment* but are capable of obtaining gainful employment within 3 years of leaving employment, then you will be entitled to immediate payment of benefits without an enhancement. This outcome is subject to an Occupational Health Physician review after 18-months.

Payments are payable either:
§ until you return to gainful employment (within 3 years of date of termination)
§ until you are considered as capable of obtaining gainful employment at your 18 month review
§ for three years

When benefits are ceased:
§ you become an active pensioner member
§ you are not eligible to receive 3rd tier payments for any future period
§ the earlier period of membership which resulted in tier 3 is not aggregated with later active membership

* Gainful employment means paid employment for not less than 30 hours a week in each week for a period of not less than 12-months

[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT] The process for determining ill health benefits is shown below:

How are ill health benefits calculated?
Pension benefits are based on your membership in the scheme and the pensionable pay you receive in, normally, your final year of service, with no detriment if your pay is reduced due to ill health. If you are part-time, your scheme membership will count as its part-time length when working out your pension and your final pay is increased to what you would have received had you been full time.

If ill-health retirement is granted, an immediate pension and, if applicable, tax-free lump sum is payable based on the actual membership, plus in some circumstances, additional membership, depending upon the level of incapacity.

There are protections for members who will be over 45 on 31 March 2008, to ensure that they receive no less than they would have done under the pre-April 2008 scheme.

Estimates of the potential benefits payable from the pension scheme must be requested via your manager/HR.

[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT] What if I have reduced my hours due to ill health before being granted ill health retirement?
If, in the Occupational Health Physician’s opinion, you are wholly or partly in part-time service as a result of the condition that lead to the ill-health retirement, then that reduction in hours should not be reflected in your service or any enhancement.

What if I had my pay reduced because of sickness before being granted ill health retirement?
If your pay is reduced because of sickness, the final pay for the calculation of your pension benefits is taken to be the pay grade you would have received had you not been sick.

Will my benefits be reduced as they are being paid early?
Ill health benefits can be paid at any age and are not reduced on account of early payment, and in certain circumstance, enhanced service may be awarded.

What happens when ill health is granted?
If early retirement on the grounds of ill health is granted, another meeting will be arranged with your Manager. The meeting should confirm the decision that you have been granted early retirement on the grounds of ill health.

At the meeting, the date for early retirement on the grounds of ill health should be agreed and confirmed in writing.

The HR Advisers team will then complete the appropriate declaration and contact Pension Services for an estimate on the approximate lump sum and pension benefits that you would receive.


What happens if ill health retirement is not granted?
If ill health retirement is not granted, the procedure for termination of employment on grounds of incapability is automatically followed.

What happens if I am unhappy with the decision about my ill health retirement application?
If you consider that you have been inappropriately refused ill-health retirement benefits or if you are unhappy with the level of benefit paid, initially contact Pension Services on an informal basis.

You can formally appeal against this decision under the Internal Disputes Resolution Procedure.

Where can I find further information?
Further information on the LGPS can be found on the LGPS website




Disclaimer
The Regulations concerning the provision of ill-health pensions are very complex. These notes only represent a simplified guide and are not intended to cover every circumstance. It should not be treated as a definitive statement of Law and nothing contained within this guide may over-ride the scheme regulations.

hyubh

scotgaz wrote: »

not a small company, part of a city's council

As John says, a city council employer will mean the LGPS, and an HR department that will be familar with the scheme's ill health retirement provisions (though I wouldn't necessarily expect an ordinary line manager to be). Both the granting of an ill health retirement, and if so, on what tier (there are three in the LGPS) is a decision of the employer rather than the pension fund, but must be according to due process. Were the decision to be a negative one, you would also have a right of appeal, in the first place to your employer again ('stage 1'), and if that fails, to the pension fund's administering authority ('stage 2'), and ultimately the Pensions Ombudsman. You would need to appeal to each authority in turn, though before you get to appealing, you need to actually request an ill health retirement from HR in the first place.

G_M

I received ill health early retirement benefits from two pensions.

One was a final salary scheme with a private company I had already left. They required medical reports from GP and consultant, and as well as confirmation of the diagnosis, the important wording is : "will never be able to work again" or similar.

At the time I was on sick leave from a university and part of LGPS scheme. The university itself decided to end my sick leave and put me on ill health early retirement (I actually wanted to delay this since remaining employed by them for 5 years would have doubled my pension entitlement). Again, the LGPS admin needed to see the medical reports.

ut in both cases it is important you get hold of your pension scheme rules and review them yourself to check the circumstances in whiccj Early retiremet is possible, and the process to follow, as well as the extent of the entitlement.

HR and/or the salary dept should have copies of the scheme if you don't already.

Line Manager is not the person who makes decisions like this, so yes, keep your manager informed, but do not rely on him/her for the process.

woolly_wombat

scotgaz wrote: »

ive been given diagnosis from consultant specialist after year ot test and being off work sick, not terminal but lifelong, no cure, treatment is managing symptoms to slow deterioration. has also said i'm not capable of working at any job again, due to condition and side effects of meds.

Sorry to hear of your health problems scotgaz.

explained this to line manager, as an occupational health assessment is soon and i wanted ill health retirement to be discussed. she has said that she will not even propose it as an option as its her job to get me back to work. and if she refused again at final stage i would just be dismissed. can she do this? is there a way to apply myself? not a small company, part of a city's council

Of course you will want to discuss ill health retirement at your assessment and you have every right to do so. You will need to tell them what the consultant has told you and they will need to obtain a report from the consultant.

It will cost the council money to give you ill health retirement so naturally they will try to get people back to work where possible, but make sure you speak up and don't let what your manager has told you put you off.

As others have said, if you are a member of a union then contact them asap. They should be able to support you at this difficult time.

Details of the England and Wales LGPS 2014 regulations can be found here:
http://www.lgpsregs.org/index.php/illhealth

For Scotland, the LGPS ill-health regulations are here:
http://timeline.lge.gov.uk/scot/Scotreg09/SSI20140023/20080230.htm#reg20

WW

System

Hi

Ill Health Retirements are factored in, a small number are expected and people like Mercer, Hymans Barnett W et al adjust the liability to the fund/employer accordingly.

So no concern should be given to the cost to the fund. I cannot vouch for individual cost centres, but the line manager or whoever should not take that into consideration.

woolly_wombat

johndough wrote: »

Hi

Ill Health Retirements are factored in, a small number are expected and people like Mercer, Hymans Barnett W et al adjust the liability to the fund/employer accordingly.

So no concern should be given to the cost to the fund. I cannot vouch for individual cost centres, but the line manager or whoever should not take that into consideration.

There may be no immediate cost to the fund, but it is still in the employer's interest to minimise ill health retirements.

http://www.wiltshirepensionfund.org.uk/employer-area/employers-guide/ill-health-retirement-active-members.htm
'For all of the above tiers, there are no immediate cost implications for the employer on a member taking an ill health retirement. Ill health strain costs will be picked up at future fund valuations.'

WW

hyubh

woolly_wombat wrote: »

it is still in the employer's interest to minimise ill health retirements.

Indeed - if one particular employer in the fund has an unusually high rate of ill health retirements, it wouldn't be very fair not to take that into account when the employer rates are set. Which is partly why a sizeable fraction of complaints the Pensions Ombudsman deals with are to do with LGPS ill health decisions...

https://www.pensions-ombudsman.org.uk/our-decisions/?topic=ill-health&s=Local+Government+Pension+Scheme

woolly_wombat

hyubh wrote: »

Indeed - if one particular employer in the fund has an unusually high rate of ill health retirements, it wouldn't be very fair not to take that into account when the employer rates are set. Which is partly why a sizeable fraction of complaints the Pensions Ombudsman deals with are to do with LGPS ill health decisions...

https://www.pensions-ombudsman.org.uk/our-decisions/?topic=ill-health&s=Local+Government+Pension+Scheme

Fascinating to see how many complaints are upheld by the Pensions Ombudsman.

I hope scotgaz has taken note of your post #5 detailing all the appeals procedures that may be necessary.

Forewarned is forearmed!

WW