Go WASPI!

I’m another who was born in 1954 and was unaware of the pension age change until quite late on. I consider myself reasonably up to date on current affairs, pre-internet I read at least one newspaper each day, saw the TV news and so on.

I lived abroad for some years so possibly it passed me by then but we always came home to stacks of mail so I doubt that I missed any letter that was sent. My Dh who is meticulous with his tax was also unaware. Maybe we’re both just ignoramuses. 🙄

Born October 1955, and pension age for me went up twice. First time to 65 and then to 66. I can't remember how I knew it was happening but I did, I don't think I had a letter so it must have been publicised.

‘What injustice?
A collection of women who don't bother to check on their pension rights while they are working and then claim ignorance as an excuse.’

What an unnecessarily harsh and unkind response.

I got my state pension at 60 but am glad to hear that these women have received justice at last. Government information is not always easily accessed or transparent if you dont have access to the internet. Lets not forget that the internet was not too widely available until the 1990s unless you were an academic. I have seen several threads where posters were attempting to access information on their pensions - one of my nephews is currently in this position - and the process is not all that straightforward.

I am just grateful that in my case the DWP wrote to me months in advance with the information to claim my state pension.

Doodledog

Glorianny

Congratulations to the Waspis who have pursued their rights in spite of all the nay-sayers.
This was an injustice to women.

I agree about men. When equalising the pension age it would have been possible to reduce the age for men whilst increasing the age for women and meeting somewhere in the middle 62 or 63.
As the French riot I wonder why we took it so quietly.

Agreed on all counts.

Thanks Doodledog It is lovely of you to acknowledge we have views which coincide. "There is more that unites us than divides us" RIP Jo Cox.

What a horrible comment Ezybee. Just because you knew it doesn’t mean that it was general knowledge. Even on the DWP website pension age for women was shown as 60 until quite recently. I am 1954, got no letter and wasn’t made aware until quite late.. I was made redundant at 60 - try getting another job after that - regardless of how well qualified. And many like me worked part time and not allowed to join pension scheme until comparatively recently, and even then can only contribute what family circumstances allow.

I am saddened that some women are so horrible to others in a world dominated by men. The whole business of changing the pension age was perhaps a necessity but the way is was executed was a disgrace.
I was born in July 1953 and heard of the cut off date to the pension age when it was announced on budget day. I had no letter telling me that those born after April 1953 would not get their pension until the government deemed fit to allow it. Lets face it they only changed the date to make a lot of money for themselves.

What we seem to forget is that to get any pension you have had to work at least 30 years, it is not a benefit it is our money that was well earnt.

The other problem still faced by women today is that it is extremely difficult and almost impossible to get a job once you hit 55, because you are a woman, prime example are women presenters for the BBC. So when the pension age was announced many woman, like myself, had already been fired, dismissed or pensioned off because of the very fact they had turned 60. So there was no way we could get alternative employment and as in my case, had to rely on my husband's pension to see me through.

This is nothing to do with ignorance of the changes, but an acceptance in tolling the government line. So please just accept that we were not told the truth about what the consequences of the changes meant in reality.

So ladies please let's not waste our energies being rude and nasty to other women. Let's be kind to each other by showing a united front against the rich, greedy b....., men in power whose only interest is to make themselves richer. If you want to change the world vote for change and women in the next election.

I totally agree that pensions should be considered from both male and female views, especially men and woman undertaking manual work, but consideration should also be given to working mothers and the stresses and strains and complications due to childbirth and there’s no need to be nasty about this - my retirement date leapt up by 6 years and I didn’t feel the notice given was enough to allow me to “save” extra funds - there’s so many nuances and complications in this issue and many WASPI women, including me, feel “cheated”

I'm another who simply wasn't informed. I'm not an idiot. I just didn't know. Luckily my occupational pension was payable at 60 so I took it then and waited for 6 years for my state pension.

Great news OP!

I'm in the Doodledog group - perfectly intelligent and hardworking individual, who had only vaguely heard about the pension age increase, didn't do social media - Was there much social media in those days? and only discovered by checking online when I was around 57/8 that my pension wouldn't be coming in until 65, and then it gradually slid up to 66.

As it happens, I had to retire at 59 years 11 months on health grounds, although obvs had to wait until I was 66 to get the SP.

I do mind being sneered at.

I'm very, very current affairs orientated and it passed me by too. I was aware of discussions, and I thought they would split the difference at 63, but in fact the first I knew about raising the age to 64.5 was when my letter arrived when I was 55. A second letter arrived about a year later saying whoops, sorry, 66 actually.

I have no beef with the necessity to raise the retirement age, and I am fortunate that I'm still able to work full time even after my 66th birthday last year. BUT, they should have let us all know as soon as the changes were agreed.

I also think the change was implemented most unfairly. My stepsister, three years older than me, has received six years more pension.

Quite true I was never personally informed of the rise in pension age till close to my pension. I heard about it on the news.

I was born in the 60s and was told I would get a pension at the age of 60 I feel that if this was a private pension we all paid into with that information this change would be classed as a fraud so why isnt it?

Doodledog, Good for you for calling out the sneering tone some Gransnetters adopt. What has happened to the sisterhood? Judge not that ye be not judged.

I’m another that had no personal letter from DWP ., neither did most of my friends. I was born July 1954 and didn’t get my pension until I was over 66.

I'm no dimwit either.

Pension age should be lower. 63 or possibly 64. There is no way that a manual worker can carry on until they are nearly seventy without damaging their health.

I’ve said before on Gransnet and I’ll say again, I was informed by letter of the first rise in my state pension eligibility age, but not the second rise of age of eligibility. I was initially informed that I would receive my state pension at age 61, but never at any stage informed that it had changed again that I would only become eligible for my state pension at age 63. I found this out by checking my pension benefits on the government website. Otherwise I would not have known. I was not informed.
You are not a dimwit paddyann, many women were simply not informed that their state pension age had changed. You and I are two of them.

I know, paddyann, and I also know that you are not alone. It is so offensive to suggest otherwise. We all know different things, and the people boasting that they knew about it so everyone else should have must think that they know everything, on the grounds that if one person is aware of something then the rest of the world should be too.

I have posted about this before. The usual suspects were very scathing that I didn't know about the age change even when I said the ONLY communication I had was ONE year before my 60th birthday saying my pension would be paid as planned 6 months after the date ,
Ihave the letter I have sent copies of it to the WASPI campaign ,Iam not lying about being "ignorant" of the fact. I had NO communication from DWP at all apart from the one I stated . It just passed me by in an exceptionally busy life .So shoot me!!
The implication from some on here is that I'm some type of dimwit who isn't up to date with whats happening around me ....nothing could be further from the truth .

Glorianny

Congratulations to the Waspis who have pursued their rights in spite of all the nay-sayers.
This was an injustice to women.

I agree about men. When equalising the pension age it would have been possible to reduce the age for men whilst increasing the age for women and meeting somewhere in the middle 62 or 63.
As the French riot I wonder why we took it so quietly.

Agreed on all counts.

Yes I would have preferred equalising at 62.5 but it had to be equalised and I knew about it years ago so came as no surprise.

Congratulations to the Waspis who have pursued their rights in spite of all the nay-sayers.
This was an injustice to women.

I agree about men. When equalising the pension age it would have been possible to reduce the age for men whilst increasing the age for women and meeting somewhere in the middle 62 or 63.
As the French riot I wonder why we took it so quietly.

rafichagran

Well said CvD66 Waspi women born in the 50s have suffered. I will be 66 this month, I have worked 6 years longer for my pension. I am one of the lucky ones, some have died waiting, and some have ill health.
I did not get my letter until very late. I have been able to work, but their are some tragic stories of suffering, women having to sell their homes, women who are/were to ill to work. Women who were doing more manual jobs which took a toll on their health.

My dad died just before his 65th birthday if he was a woman he would have been able to have had 5 years of retirement. Many men had manual jobs which took a toll on their health and had to struggle on till they were 65. There were injustices in both directions. It could be argued that as men die earlier they should retire earlier. We should look at these things from both directions and not just from our own point of view.

Primrose53

I never understood why friends who were born before end April 1953 got their pensions years before me. For being born just 6 months after them 4 years were added to my wait.

Because the pension age needs to rise.