Civil Service Ill-Health Pension - Classic/alpha

lisa1966

I’m all
I’m hoping for an update re your CS pension & ill health retirement as I’m in the same position but at the beginning of the process. I have 18yrs reckonable service in classic and 4 years in alpha. I’m 53 and off sick but sick pay due to drop to half pay in a few eeeks. . Just had my line manager suggest ill health retirement although I don’t feel I qualify as I do want to work again. I’d like to do a stress free part time role. Can you work again if you are awarded IHR??? Also, how long does the process take?? I’m going to struggle when my pay drops to half pay and I feel very much in limbo at the moment. I have a mortgage and I’m worrying about how I manage on half pay. I’m not allowed to take a small part time job whilst off sick to top up the reduced half pay. How do you manage and how long will I have to wait in limbo? Any advice welcome please? Thank you.

Trying_to_be_good

Hi, sorry you're off poorly.
If you're able to find a suitable part-time role in the civil service it may be your best option.
For ill-health retirement, it's not a question of whether you WANT to work again, it's whether your health will enable you to work again at your current grade (lower tier award) or at all (upper tier award).
It takes a long time to get through the process, I was on nil pay by the time I was retired, and that was with me accepting a date as soon as possible so I'd get some income. I was using savings to pay my mortgage.
In my experience, you need to do everything you can to get well - only if it all isn't enough will the Scheme Medical Advisor agree to ill-health retirement. Then your employer also has to agree.
If they're considering dismissing you on ill-health capability grounds (which may have compensation attached), put in for ill-health retirement but it's rare for it to be granted for stress/mental health illnesses.
Good luck with the process, but more importantly I hope you can get well enough to carry on working.

lisa1966

Trying_to_be_good wrote: »

Hi, sorry you're off poorly.
If you're able to find a suitable part-time role in the civil service it may be your best option.
For ill-health retirement, it's not a question of whether you WANT to work again, it's whether your health will enable you to work again at your current grade (lower tier award) or at all (upper tier award).
It takes a long time to get through the process, I was on nil pay by the time I was retired, and that was with me accepting a date as soon as possible so I'd get some income. I was using savings to pay my mortgage.
In my experience, you need to do everything you can to get well - only if it all isn't enough will the Scheme Medical Advisor agree to ill-health retirement. Then your employer also has to agree.
If they're considering dismissing you on ill-health capability grounds (which may have compensation attached), put in for ill-health retirement but it's rare for it to be granted for stress/mental health illnesses.
Good luck with the process, but more importantly I hope you can get well enough to carry on working.

Thanks for this message. Do you know the process for ill health capability dismissal? I’ve told my employer I don’t want ill health retirement as I don’t believe I’m going to be eligible. I do have a degenerative health condition but I’m perfect capable of orking less hours than I have been doing. I had asked for reasonable adjustments in the form of pt hours but this was refused.
I have now been told that my case has been referred to a decision maker for consideration for dismissal. That was over a week ago and I’ve heard nothing since so I’m not sure what’s happening!! Do you know how this process plays out?
Thanks
Lisa

Trying_to_be_good

You may have to have a meeting, or the decision to dismiss may be taken anyway.
The decision maker will decide whether they believe compensation should be payable which is up to the equivalent of redundancy compensation, nowhere near what ill-health retirement would pay.
They'll agree a leaving date if you're being dismissed.

ste.j419

Q's by Ste.j...

I've been on light duties while the IHR application / process has been ongoing - Chief medical advisor has issued certificate - titled '"classic" whereby has granted IHR but not the severe ill health (so in line with expected low tier as with alpha) - had meeting with employer and is supporting IHR and i've had the figures statement stating combined classic/alpha is 10g per annum - at retirement age !! And a compensation figure (decent sum) ---- been told i'm entitled to the compensation sum which i understand is really more like a redundancy one off payment ----
Q

---

Am i entitled and will i get the full 10g per annum under IHR because all the managers just scratch their heads when asked - massive confusion with all the changes with Alpha - upper / lower tier etc (also timescales for payments to start given that i now have a finish date)

Trying_to_be_good

There's a difference between IHR (ill-health retirement), which pays a pension /pension equivalent straight away, and ill-health/capability dismissal, which is the equivalent of a redundancy payment and pension entitlement at pension age.
If you've been well enough to work light duties, it may be that you're not poorly enough for IHR. It's the SCHEME Medical advisor, from the pension scheme, that needs to certify ill-health retirement, and which tier. Maybe it's still medical advice within your department at the moment and not the Scheme Medical Advisor yet?

Trying_to_be_good

It's either a compensating lump sum now and pension later OR pension now with pension lump sum (with classic) and no compensation.

ste.j419

Scheme medical advisor PCSPS has issued a Classic IHR certificate. Had a meeting with the boss agreeing for IHR and finish date is soon. i know how much i can get as a compensation lump sum - but no one seems to be able to spell out what i get if choose not to have the lumpsum and just draw on the pension under IHR....

The quote shows the classic per annum pension amount and the Alpha per annum amount - reading the guidance booklet for the Alpha scheme - from what i gather we were all forced over to the Alpha scheme in 2015 - so its the alpha scheme rukes that apply - - first it says under medical retirement u get paid both the classic and the alpha - then it contradicts itself saying "under alpha regulations the classic part will not be paid when u retire on Ill health" -- what on earth was i paying into it for 17 years for then ?

Trying_to_be_good

You get the equivalent of the classic amount, plus the alpha amount. It just can't be called the same thing. I get a single payment each month, called alpha, of which part is actual alpha and part (the majority) is the equivalent of the classic bit. The language/communications is REALLY complicated.

I'd be amazed if you get compensation AND IHR, I was told it wasn't possible. But please let me know!

Trying_to_be_good

When I get to 60, the bit that's equivalent to classic will be then be called "classic" , I believe, but there isn't a second pension lump sum as that (or its equivalent) has already been paid out.