Pensions

[Donegal john]

One bloke phoned in and said he was an electrician who made a good living but as he got older he had to give up a lot of jobs due to his knees, he took jobs where he could do most of the work standing for while but his knees got worse and he had to give up, as he said he hasn't done anything else what are they going to train him to do and when they train him where are all these jobs coming from.

He needs to get himself a cushy maintenance job and an apprentice
I know what he means. I just turned 50 and I couldn’t do the commercial/industrial work anymore. The thought of working as a spark until 67 scares the hell out of me. I won’t have to but I pity anyone that does

 

[Brew_DD2]

Unfortunately we have a tiny ratio of people of working age:pensioners relative to decades past. It's gone from 13:1 to around 3:1. To summarise, we aren't going to have an old age pension for all in the not-so-distant future unless we either start shagging a lot more, or increase immigration. You won't hear many politicians saying that though because it isn't politically expedient.

 

[Rodcx500z]

Of course with pensions and retirements none of really know how long we have so there is always an element of the unknown, but I do take to heart advice from a former work collegue. Be able to enjoy your ACTIVE retirement years before your active world shrinks.

Your not wrong, my world caved in when i sat across a table and a surgeon told me i had to have open aortic operation 15 months after i retired, that was 5 years ago, then the heart attack last year, i stopped smoking before all this happened so that helped, one thing that helped me was when i went for tests before the big op, they get you on a bike all wired up face mask on full monty like when you see footballers having a medical, they really push you i passed that with flying colors which eased my mind a lot, if these next generations don't alter how they live a lot won't see a pension but it's the fallout that will effect their spouse and kids and how they are left to cope, i don't know how the people who make these desisions live with their self's i couldn't do it

 

[Clint]

I think a good strategy where the option exists is to plan to be in a position of management in later years where your role is more focused on oversight, assurance, managing risks and resolving issues. These activities need, and make best use of, the years of experience you have while also releasing you from much of the physical effort. You need to think about the qualifications, experience, and behaviours you need to develop to step into those management roles.

You can alternatively plan to change jobs (easier said than done I know) but if you’re doing something you enjoy you might prefer to shift a little rather than change a lot. Changing almost always means stepping down too because your real experience and value lies elsewhere.

"Plan to be in a position of management ".....
Where I work now to get promoted you need the following qualifications....
Be a complete ar5e kisser.
Be totally crap at the job you already do...and Be a leg humper.
Be a relative of the manager/,personnel manager.
Be a crawler.
Have a full knowledge of grassing everyone up on your shift.
Tell more tales than Enid Blyton.

 

[Donegal john]

"Plan to be in a position of management ".....
Where I work now to get promoted you need the following qualifications....
Be a complete ar5e kisser.
Be totally crap at the job you already do...and Be a leg humper.
Be a relative of the manager/,personnel manager.
Be a crawler.
Have a full knowledge of grassing everyone up on your shift.
Tell more tales than Enid Blyton.

So mid level management then

 

[Nicks90]

My mates always took the piss when we were in our early twenties as I was chucking loads at my pension (employer matched +3%) and overpaid my mortgage whenever I could.
"Sod that, buy a better car, buy the latest TV / phone / insert consumerism product here."
Now I am nearly 50, mortgage is all but paid off and I can send my daughter to uni without too much financial pain (which will help set her up in early working life) and I will be able to retire at 60 on a decent whack and enjoy my retirement!
I could retire before that, if we downsize the house and free up the equity, but that's a sore point at the moment against Mrs nicks90.....

 

[Chippy_Tea]

, we aren't going to have an old age pension for all in the not-so-distant future

Every couple of years we are automatically rolled into a works pension you can opt out but I assume they are hoping as time goes by the younger ones won't bother and will stick with it, I think this is the thin end of the wedge and eventually you won't have the option to opt out then they will drop the state pension.

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

"Plan to be in a position of management ".....
Where I work now to get promoted you need the following qualifications....
Be a complete ar5e kisser.
Be totally crap at the job you already do...and Be a leg humper.
Be a relative of the manager/,personnel manager.
Be a crawler.
Have a full knowledge of grassing everyone up on your shift.
Tell more tales than Enid Blyton.

Did you get the management job?

 

[Clint]

What do you think H?
The thing is regarding pensions the future etc....no one knows when their time is up so part of me thinks....have what you like when you like.
I've had great uncles who survived two world wars,worked down the pit til they retired,smoked Senior Service and were at the Legion swilling beer most nights and lived well into their 80's.
And I've had good mates who never saw their 40's...

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

What do you think H?
The thing is regarding pensions the future etc....no one knows when their time is up so part of me thinks....have what you like when you like.
I've had great uncles who survived two world wars,worked down the pit til they retired,smoked Senior Service and were at the Legion swilling beer most nights and lived well into their 80's.
And I've had good mates who never saw their 40's...

You know I’m just teasing.

I planned for my future because I didn’t want to be struggling in old age and even more I didn’t want my wife to struggle.

 

[Clint]

I know you are pal. I just couldn't do all that crawling...only when I have to...and that'll be when my metal hip gives in!

 

[Leon103]

Think people will have to get used to the fact the state pension isn't worth nothing. Private pension or investment will be the only way forward. I am lucky that I have a very good private pension which will see me retire at 55. I am not thinking about it yet, years to go. If fit and healthy I don't mind going to 60. Sometimes you are busier in retirement. My father retired at 48 and seems busier than ever, I rather be in work out of the way

 

[aolcot]

Yeah i'm in my mid-40s and I think I'm at the tail end of the generations that might see a state pension of sorts.. I can't see how the state pension is affordable with the way things are/going and definitely believe as some others have said that it'll erode away to nothing over the next 3 or 4 decades and everyone who is fit/able to do so is expected to provide for themselves largely from their working careers.
I'm just waiting for the announcement in the years ahead that those with a certain amount in a private pension won't get a state pension from x point in time...

 

[dad_of_jon]

Yeah i'm in my mid-40s and I think I'm at the tail end of the generations that might see a state pension of sorts.. I can't see how the state pension is affordable with the way things are/going and definitely believe as some others have said that it'll erode away to nothing over the next 3 or 4 decades and everyone who is fit/able to do so is expected to provide for themselves largely from their working careers.
I'm just waiting for the announcement in the years ahead that those with a certain amount in a private pension won't get a state pension from x point in time...

Something like increasing it by 1 year every 10 years until it reaches X would whilst not welcome give a bit more certainty for longer term planning.

 

[user 4749]

I just found out that I am short of 3 years for my state pension even though I have paid 39 years . This is due to something called Cope -Contracted out pension equivalent. Now I work for the Government my whole career and knew nothing about this basically I paid less NI and some was put to my work pension .
Luckily I have time to rectify this this but had I not found out and left it I would have been on a lesser Sate Pension come the age of 67.
Something for people to check on especially if they have budgeted on a full state pension.

 

[aolcot]

Something like increasing it by 1 year every 10 years until it reaches X would whilst not welcome give a bit more certainty for longer term planning.

Exactly something like that.. In addition, making a workplace pension compulsory for all people as they leave the education system and start earning over a certain threshold. Sure it'll prob be an admin nightmare at first, and complexity with self-employed etc but at least in 40years, a vast number of people that had active working careers should have some kind of a private pension and reduce the pressure on the state pension to those that really need it...

 

[Bernie]

Private or state what sustains the value of that money over the years?
1 A pension pot needs a yield of about 7% to maintain its value and pay a pension when a person retires. We've had a decade or more of interest rates below inflation ie savings at least in government bonds etc have lost their value. The only hope for some have been Poni schemes.
2 How can a society maintain itself if the number of pensioners cannot be serviced directly or indirectly by the rest of the population?

 

[aolcot]

I don't claim to know the inner workings of private pensions, how they are protected/underwritten etc, so please correct me: but at the moment, many pension providers are enjoying vast numbers of active workers contributing compared to the numbers retiring but as the needle swings and more retire over the years ahead as that surge of people ramps up, and sum of contributions increasing, are we in danger of them not being able to pay out and we start to see companies going bust and savings being lost?
It does feel like a bit of a ticking time bomb

 

[klaus]

I just found out that I am short of 3 years for my state pension even though I have paid 39 years . This is due to something called Cope -Contracted out pension equivalent. Now I work for the Government my whole career and knew nothing about this basically I paid less NI and some was put to my work pension .
Luckily I have time to rectify this this but had I not found out and left it I would have been on a lesser Sate Pension come the age of 67.
Something for people to check on especially if they have budgeted on a full state pension.

My company pension scheme has always advised members that the NI they pay is "contracted out" so not a surprise (to me anyway). Surprised though this wasn't explained to gov employees.

 

[foxy]

Do employers put 12% of gross wage value into a private scheme for employees? The employee then adds to that with what is affordable to him if he wishes to do so. I have mentioned before state pensions are means tested if you have sufficient funds in the bank or a healthy private pension you wont see a brass razoo.
If you fall off the perch on a state pension the pension stops, doesn't go to the spouse like it does in the UK.