Published
19th August 2022
19th August 2022
Periods of absence from your workplace due to industrial action are regarded as ‘non-pensionable’. This means that no pension scheme contributions are deducted from your pay for any period of time you spend on strike and any earnings lost through industrial action will not be included in the calculation of your pension benefits.
The amount of 'lost' pension is equal to 1/49th of the pensionable pay you would have received had you not been absent. For example, if you ‘lost’ pay amounting to £100 for the period of strike action, the amount of ‘lost’ pension would be £2.04 per annum (£100 / 49). In addition, if you have final salary membership (membership before 01 April 2015) and your pensionable pay is reduced in your final year leading up to leaving or retiring from the scheme, the ‘pensionable pay’ used to calculate your final salary pension benefits will also be reduced.
If you would like to buy back 'lost' pension as a result of absence due to strike days, you can use our online calculator to work out how much this will cost and to make an application.
You will need to know how much ‘pensionable pay’ you have lost during your period of absence – you will be able to find this on your payslip or by contacting your payroll department.
You can choose to buy the 'lost' pension by spreading the payments over a period of 1 complete year (12 monthly instalments), or by a one-off lump sum so long as your monthly salary payment will be enough to cover the payment due.
You should use the Buy Lost Pension option to obtain a quote and make an application. Your completed application form should be returned to pensions.section@highland.gov.uk.
Terms and conditions can be found here.
If you do not elect to buy back 'lost' pension contributions, the period of absence will not count for pension purposes. If you have certain protections known as the Underpin and Rule of 85, this can affect your Earliest Retirement Date from the scheme. The Earliest Retirement Date is the date in which you can elect to receive your retirement benefits without a reduction. More information about the Underpin and Rule of 85 can be found here.
