UCU: Initiating legal action on USS

Motion

Motion text: HESC notes:
1. USS’s proposed 2020 Covid valuation risks members’ contributions rising to 14-20%.
2. Academics for Pension Justice’s QC opinion that there are good grounds for taking legal action against USS on breach of trust.
HESC believes:
a. There is an urgent need to defend USS.
b. What happens to USS will probably affect all DB schemes, including those in post-92 and FE, and members of the wider trade union movement.
HESC agrees that legal action is an appropriate means of defending USS and should be initiated as soon as possible.
HESC instructs Strategy and Finance Committee to:
i. Take immediate steps to initiate urgent legal action, e.g. to delay current and overturn previous valuations and replace them by a better process. This will require obtaining legal advice on the most appropriate forms of legal action.
ii. Actively involve the UCU Superannuation Working Group (minus directors) and endeavour to get them included in the legally privileged group with access to the legal advice.