Universities UK (UUK) has written to the USS Trustee with a summary of employer responses to the 2017 valuation Recovery Plan and Schedule of Contributions consultation.
The responses – received from 59 USS employers representing approximately 79% of the scheme’s active membership – contain a number of common themes relating to the Trustee’s proposals on which employers have expressed strong views:
- Employers do not believe the USS Trustee has demonstrated adequate justification for setting deficit recovery contributions at 6%.
- The contribution levels due from October 2019 will have significant financial implications for employers and members, potentially undermining the long-term future of some institutions and increasing the number of members opting-out respectively.
- Employers question the weight given by the Trustee to recent market movements in the proposals, given the enduring nature of the scheme and the covenant provided to the scheme by employers.
The responses also reiterated employers’ support for the 2018 valuation process as a means of facilitating an agreed solution in line with that proposed by the JEP, and acknowledged that the contribution levels arising from the 2017 valuation will remain in place unless and until they are superseded by any new agreement arising from that process.
Download the full summary below.
