Universities UK has written to the USS Trustee with a summary of employer responses to the 2018 valuation technical provisions consultation, including their views on the proposed contingent contributions arrangement.
Responses were received from employers representing approximately 89% of the scheme’s active membership. UUK believes the representative view of USS employers is:
- Employers remain to be convinced that the upper bookend contribution value of 33.7% of salary is the ‘correct’ price for the current benefits.
- Reluctantly, and on the basis that it is the ‘least worst’ option, a significant majority of employers express support for the proposal for Contingent Contributions (CCs) put forward by UUK. The support of employers is conditional upon confirmation that the UUK proposal delivers a contribution rate in line with the lower bookend.
- Employers also believe that CCs will allow them to look forward to the next valuation, and that the second phase of work by the Joint Expert Panel will be the means through which a genuinely sustainable longer-term solution can be found.
We understand that the USS trustee will consider the UUK response to the consultation at its Board meeting on 28 March 2019. We expect the USS trustee will communicate its views to UUK and USS employers as soon as practicable after that meeting.
Download the full response below.
