Solidarity with the WASPI women!

Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) has finally had a reply from the government, the same government that in its run up to election, had stated they would support compensation for women disadvantaged by rapid and often confusing changes to pensions under the previous Tory government. Disgracefully the Labour government has said no: no, they will not, that people should have known about the changes and acted accordingly.

The Parliamentary and Health Services Ombudsman has “investigated complaints that, since 1995, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has failed to provide accurate, adequate and timely information about areas of State Pension reform.” (Women’s State Pension age and associated issues: investigation summary | Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO))

Their investigation showed maladministration and injustice.

Women of retirement age had clearly lost benefits due to a series of poorly communicated changes. The ombudsman also makes it clear that it is very rare for organisations where they have proved maladministration to not pay up.  But they recognise that given the stance of the DWP this was unlikely to happen which is why they referred it to the Government.

Women, older women, the ones discriminated against in the workplace from finding suitable replacement jobs and not minimum wage work, have suffered financially and mentally due to the stress of their planned retirement being changed within one year of retirement when the goalposts were suddenly and significantly moved by the Government.

Yet the senior Labour politicians who categorically said they supported compensating these women, prior to being elected to Government, have now stated they will not.

These are our colleagues, people we’ve worked with, women in our communities, perhaps a family member. 3.6 million women are affected.

And we need to defend them. I would ask all BLN members to reach out to their local councils, their own GECs, asking for a clear statement of support for the WASPI campaign. We can still bring pressure to bear on the government to do what the Ombudsman has recommended and partially compensate these colleagues and comrades.