Fair treatment. That’s what’s at the heart of the current bp pensioner campaign. This follows the decision by bp leadership to refuse the requested discretionary 4% increase (over and above the 5% cap) requested by the bp pension trustees.
Recent comparisons between bp salary uplift and bp pension uplift over the past five years are interesting however it smacks of comparing apples with melons.
Pensioners are not staff. There is a huge difference in their circumstances and status. Let us consider that your average staff member receives a comprehensive package and will also have ongoing opportunities to positively influence their income and status which will include at least some of the following in addition to a basic pay element:
Performance related pay
Grade related increments
Spot bonuses
Promotion opportunities
Overtime
Share schemes
Allowances (e.g. Offshore, London Weighting, Overseas)
Car
Health plan
and contributions towards a pension
A pensioner receives a pension. That’s it. When was the last time you heard of a pensioner receiving a bonus or a promotion? It’s simply not the same. So while the basic payment increases can be compared it’s really only part of the story and arguably not a fair metric to use for comparison purposes.
When you consider that around 16,000 bp pensioners are in their 80s and 90s it’s not difficult to appreciate why the bp pensioner campaign is important and why it is building momentum. We need to ensure that we bp pensioners get the uplift in pension we were assured we would receive. The money is ring-fenced in the bp pension scheme, it’s there for the benefit of the bp pensioners and it should be used, especially if the bp pension trustees recommend it because they believe the fund can support it, for the benefit of all the bp pensioners.