Employer News
- Strike - 30th November 2011
- Contribution bands from 2011
- Agenda for the employer meeting on the 15th November 2010
- Invite to employers to attend 2010 Valuation meeting
- Letter sent to employers on the 2010 Valuation Sept 10
- 2010 Valuation
- Calculation of Remunerations
- New LGPS DVD
- Annual Benefit Statements 2009
- Pension Contribution Pay Bands 2009
- Recent Updates to the Employer Section
- LGPS New Scheme Video (2008 version)
- Recent Updates to the Employer Section
- April 2008 Brief Guide/LGPS Video
- Flexible Retirement Strain Costs
- Compensation Regulation Changes
- GAD Early Retirement Guidance
Strike - 30th November 2011
Despite the latest offer put forward by the Government to the unions, it would seem the forthcoming strikes in relation to public sector pensions are set to take place on 30th November 2011.
We have produced a form for the employee to compete if they wish to pay additional contributions to have this period of strike treated as pensionable. Please note you will need to add your name and address for the employee to return the form back to you. You can find a copy of this form here.
We also require you to inform us of all those who went on strike and whether or not they paid contributions to cover the period by completing our strike spreadsheet.
Once completed please can you return the spreadsheet to Jane Aplin at the following address jane.j.aplin@devon.gcsx.gov.uk
Contribution bands from 2011
On the basis that the index to be used for benefits from 1 April 2011 is the September 2010 CPI figure of 3.1% published in October 2010 the following pay ranges will apply to contribution rates from next April
Whole time equivalent pay range Employee contribution rate
£0 - £12,900 5.5%
£12,901 - £15,100 5.8%
£15,101 - £19,400 5.9%
£19,401 - £32,400 6.5%
£32,401 - £43,300 6.8%
£43,301 - £81,100 7.2%
More than £81,100 7.5%
Agenda for the meeting held on the 15th November 2010
On Monday 15th November a meeting was held at the Isca Centre with scheme employers to discuss the 2010 valuation ( a copy of the agenda can be found here 
(11KB - pdf help)).
Invite sent to employers to attend the 2010 Valuation meeting
A letter was sent to all employers inviting them to attend a meeting discussing the 2010 Actuarial Valuation. Please find attached a copy of that letter here (12KB - pdf help)
Letter to employers Sept 2010
In September 2010 a letter was sent to all employers concerning the current 2010 Valuation Please find attached a copy of that letter here (23KB - pdf help)
2010 Valuation - April 2010
As per our recent communication regarding the 2010 valuation timetables, please find attached a copy of that letter (10KB - pdf help) sent out in April 2010.
Calculation of Remunerations - June 2009
There still appears to be an issue with the calculation of remunerations. Please refer to the notes/examples in the Employers Guide. The calculation is the employers responsibility. Employers should be calculating the part time & full time equivalent where appropriate. This also goes for those variable time employees, it is no good providing amount paid and hourly rate as lots of you also pay enhancements. Any employer who wishes to discuss this in more detail please come back to me.
(originally emailed to all employers on 9th June 2009)
New LGPS DVD - June 2009
Following on from the success of the first edition there is now an updated version which has been split into 2 sections - Overview of the LGPS wef 1/4/08 & Q & A's if you were an existing member pre 1/4/08 who moved over to the the New look Scheme.
We are currently in the process of placing the new DVD on our website. Any Employer wishing to obtain a copy of the updated DVD should contact us direct.
Edit: We have the new DVD/CD in our possession, which is suitable for presentations and viewing via a media player or on a television/DVD set-up. Unfortunately, the CD's containing resources required to make the new video available on the website have not reached us yet. As soon as this situation changes, we shall make the new video available.
(originally emailed to all employers on 9th June 2009)
Annual Benefit Statements 2009 - March 2009
The current member Annual Benefit Statements for 2009 have been printed and sent out. At the time of writing (24th March), statements for all but one district have been sent to their relevant destination (and in the preferred condition, as confirmed earlier with the Systems Development Team).
WIth regards to the inevitable queries raised by receipt of this years statements, we can confirm that any further statements will be sent directly to scheme members home addresses.
Pension Contribution Pay Bands 2009 - February 2009
Pay bands used to determine pension contribution rates have been updated and are due to come into effect from April 2009. The pay bands are as follows -
If your Whole Time Pay Rate is: |
You pay a contribution rate of: |
Up to £12,600 |
5.5% |
£12,601 to £14,700 |
5.8% |
£14,701 to £18,900 |
5.9% |
£18,901 to £31,500 |
6.5% |
£31,501 to £42,000 |
6.8% |
£42,001 to £78,700 |
7.2% |
More than £78,700 |
7.5% |
Recent Updates to the Employer Section - June 2008
Recent additions to the employers section of the pensions website;-
- PLOG Details page now includes the results of the PLOG feedback forms we have recently introduced. The forms provide us with valuable feedback regarding the PLOG meetings and how Devon Pension Services performs in the view of the employers.
- The Employers Forms section of the website now includes an IDRP Practitioners Guide (249KB - pdf help); a document written with the employers view in mind, rather than the generic guide of old.
- The updated version of our Employers Guide (NaNMB - pdf help) (July 2008 version) is now available.
LGPS New Scheme Video - April 2008
The new look LGPS video - as presented at the PLOG meeting of 12th February 2008 - is now available for viewing on this website. The video is available in three sections:
Part 1 - Introduction: Why the Scheme is changing
Part 2 - Overview of the Local Government Pension Scheme in England and Wales from 1 April 2008
Part 3 - Questions & Answers for existing members
Once you select the section you wish to view, you will be taken to the relevant video as hosted by Google Video.
Recent Updates to the Employer Section - February 2008
- Employer forms are now available online. Please contact us for further additions to this section.
- The PLOG section has now been updated with the various documents/presentations shown at the February meeting; the Powerpoint presentation , the leaflet handed out on the day plus a transcript (57KB - pdf help) of the LGPS 'new look' scheme video which has been sent out.
- Employer discretions have been updated to take into account the changes in the new scheme.
April 2008 Brief Guide/LGPS Video - February 2008
As presented at the PLOG meeting of 12th February 2008, the employers guide to the April 2008 scheme changes is now available to read online. The video produced by the DCLG is currently being sent out to all employers on a DVD; we hope to have the video available for online viewing within the next few weeks (current issues not withstanding). There is also a transcript (57KB - pdf help) available which you may find useful for quick-referencing the video.
Flexible Retirement Strain Costs - July 2007
In an effort to clarify to our staff the procedures for dealing with flexible retirements (and their subsequent strain costs), the following memo has been circulated around Devon Pension Services -
"If a member is retiring on the grounds of flexible retirement or employers consent and has met the 85 year rule there is no cost to the employee. The only cost is a 'Strain Cost' to the employer. Obviously, if the member is 60 or over then they can retire voluntarily at no cost to the employer whether they meet the 85 year rule or not. If they don't meet the 85 year rule then the member will have an actuarial reduction to their benefits.
To summarise:
MEMBER AGE 50-60
- 85 year rule met - strain cost to employer, no cost to the employee
- 85 year rule would have been met between date of leaving and age 60 - strain cost to employer, actuarial cost to member
- 85 year rule would never have been met before age 60 - No strain cost to employer but actuarial cost to member. Please note there is still some uncertainty that in a few cases there may be a strain cost to the employer; suggest the employer contacts us in these circumstances to check the particular employees situation.
MEMBER AGE 60 OR OVER
- 85 year rule met - No cost to employer or employee
- 85 year rule would never have been met before age 65 - No strain cost to employer but actuarial cost to member.
Compensation Regulation Changes - January 2007
The DCLG has recently issued new regulations regarding the awarding of redundancy/efficiency compensatory awards. A guidance note has been provided by the DCLG, outlining the changes in a more operational manner. The note and the regulations themselves are available now from·www.lge.gov.uk. The regulations came into force on 29th November 2006 but are retrospective to 1st October 2006.
GAD Early Retirement Guidance - October 2006
GAD (Government Actuary's Department) has released its early retirement guidance/factors for regulations 31 and 35 (please·consult the guide (136KB - pdf help) for further information).
