How “negotiable” is a VR payment (early retirement also)

bluebirdy

I’m wondering if anyone has experience of negotiating a better VR payment than an already enhanced one?

I can take my pension (am over 55) and would do so if VR was offered. The scheme I’m in (USS) has many different bits and the earlier sections used to offer “unreduced pension at 50/55 on redundancy” etc.

This (automatically enhancing pension) is no longer the case and employer has not offered enhanced pension terms in recent redundancies. 

But as this is a voluntary settlement, I could ask, right? Eg. To offset my losses due to ERF reductions, if they really want to save my salary costs, they might offer me a bit more?
I don’t know if it worth waving USS scheme rules at them on this.

Or is this wishful thinking and this just never happens?

LinLui

I guess there are always exceptions, but in my experience VR is not negotiable. Change the scheme for one person and it sets a bad precedent- everyone has a good reason for deserving special treatment. 

kempiejon

Our firm used to offer VR on grounds of business efficiency with enhanced pay out about twice statuary and from 55 pension without actuarial reductions. They ditched the enhanced pay out but still asked us to apply for VR. As it was no longer more attractive than taking the statuary should the worst happen. However with redundancy after 55 we could get the pension without reductions. It cost the employer an amount of money equivalent to topping up the pension so they were keen to offer VR to those under 55.