Private sector workers face a bleak old age
- Thread starter scorza
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I know somebody who doesn't pay anything into one because they think there will have been a Socialist revolution by the time they retire
I am one of them. I work in the public sector but don't bother putting mine into a pension scheme. I do put a little bit money away though. My motto is if people who don't work can survive I sure can. Whatever happens, happens.
I do no a lot of people pulling out of the pension scheme and I do no they have just started a private pension.
With the working age going up what's the point, by the time you retire you will be dead on the job since they are making people work longer and not giving the younger generation a chance to start since it's harder to find jobs because the population has increased and boomed so big in the last 10 years.
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Soldato
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Is there much point? the job I'm currently in I barely get paid enough to live as is (certainly wouldn't be enough if I was living on my own) and I certainly don't have an extravagant lifestyle by the standards of many in this country.
Last year one of the girls at work husband died of heart attack due to the stress of working 6 days a week to pay in to a pension pot for when they retired, look where that got them!
Basically I'm going to die working or near as makes no difference, if I pay in to a pension my state pension will be reduced to next to nothing (and it's not like I'll be better off in reality) and if there is no state pension by the time I retire then we'll be living in a third world country and I wont be able to retire anyway.
rose tinted specs and all
Last year one of the girls at work husband died of heart attack due to the stress of working 6 days a week to pay in to a pension pot for when they retired, look where that got them!
Basically I'm going to die working or near as makes no difference, if I pay in to a pension my state pension will be reduced to next to nothing (and it's not like I'll be better off in reality) and if there is no state pension by the time I retire then we'll be living in a third world country and I wont be able to retire anyway.
rose tinted specs and all
Well if his pension is like mine, his pot should have been transferred to his widow as part of her inheritance somehow. To be honest, I checked and that's the only reason why I'm putting into mine - so I can at least leave something to my nieces and nephews when I pop my clogs, which will inevitably be before I retire.
Soldato
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she would rather have been a bit worse off when retired than a widow at 50.
No doubt. I'm just looking at it from the guy's point of view - us chaps have a need to provide for our women, even after we're dead.
Notsureifserious.jpg
Yeh I was serious. Why do you need a pension?
I just invest the money myself. Genuine question for the money experts. I know pensions have potential tax benefits but with all the regulations and stuff I'd rather just keep the money and stay in control.
One of the biggest benefits of pensions is if your employer contributes to it. E.g. with my pension, which is admittedly crap, I effectively put 4% of my salary in the pot, and my employer puts in 8% of my salary. So in reality I'm saving 12% of my gross salary while in effect only losing 4% from my disposable income. Now if the city spivs don't lose it all (which is a big if), that should mean my pension pot is bigger than just doing it yourself. Any left-over disposable income I'm free to invest myself however I like.
I invest it too, but I don't pay tax on it before it gets invested.
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The only real benefits, in comparison to normal savings, are the tax relief you get, and the fact that the money is controlled by someone - some people would really struggle to look after their money properly in retirement and an annual salary is better.
I know somebody who doesn't pay anything into one because they think there will have been a Socialist revolution by the time they retire
Then he's doubly idiotic.
Thanks. I sort of knew the answer before I posted but I wanted people to rise to the debate (because I genuinly want opinions on it)
If my employer made contribtuions like that then I'd certinaly have a pension (yours actually sounds pretty good?!). Unfortunately it's a small company and I don't think they have a pension scheme like that set up.
But don't you pay tax when you withdraw your pension? Also, is it taxed at the rate when you put it in, or at the current rate of tax when you withdraw?
You pay tax on some of it - but I'm still better off than investing it outside of the pension (which I'd pay tax on twice)