New WASPI petition launched today

I hope it succeeds. I only mentioned it because in cases like this wording is very important, and because IMO WASPI has done the cause a lot of harm in various ways (not for this thread), yet has become synonymous with it. People call themselves WASPI women who may never have read the website or made themselves aware of the history of the campaign, so the aims of the founders are now assumed to speak for all affected women. A less fractured approach to the cause may well have succeeded, but it didn’t happen.

Anyway, I am very much in favour of compensation for all those affected, and as I say, I have signed this (and several other ) petitions over the years.

Hi Doodledog and anyone else who is 50s born and equally affected, but not in the Waspi group. I apologise that it seemed I was leaving you out. The term Waspi women is used by many as an instantly recognisable catchall for us and the Waspi campaign (even before I joined) has been a good source of updates and information, for me, anyway and I forgot how many of us are out there, but not in any official campaign or grouping.

I eventually joined after a series of events which started with offering to get someone from one of the campaigns to talk to my MP as I didn’t have facts and figures.

His staff said he could only talk to constituents, so, at that time I went off and researched, but when I went back to the MP’s office, they said he’d since been made a junior minister and - as such - couldn’t be seen to take sides. No joy there then.

By then, I was content to monitor and follow what was happening, but I finally joined around the time it became obvious the DWP were indicating they would not take action, even if a court said they had to.

Even before I joined, I got used to using Waspi as a term as I feel people recognise it and it cuts down explanations. I’m not going to stop, but you have made me think twice about labelling and I hope to be more considerate in future towards all similarly affected people.

I would never have joined Waspi, or posted the link, if I thought any resulting compensation would be members-only. It’s all or none, though I agree with other posters about the outlook.

Thank you for the reminder, and for signing the petition which is standing at over 66,000.

Thank you for the link. Signed, now over 66K
xx

Signed.

Signed thank you.

I have signed, but I am not in WASPI, and the petition is to compensate WASPI women. It might have a broader reach if it asked for 50s born women to be compensated, rather than using the name of one of the campaign groups, even though it is undoubtedly the most famous, and many people seem to think it is a catch-all term for all women who expected to retire at 60 when they started work.

WASPI has a membership, with membership fees. It is not a general term for all affected women.

Signed.

Signed & shared - thanks

Now over 60,000. Thanks.

It's over 57,000. Has to be raised in Parliament if it's over 100,000. Thanks to all who are sharing this.

Signed and thank you for the link.

Signed - 46,438 signatures. Where are the other 50,000 plus WASPIs?

Signed and shared, but like others I don’t have much hope that anything will come of it.

Now at 46,263. Keep going and thanks.

Signed and shared now at 34,577.

Signed. But I don't expect anything.
I did get a letter telling me it was going to change.

Signed :-)

Born 1955. When I started paid work in 1974 I thought I would retire 2015, 41 years until retirement. I had no idea about anything about qualifying years or maximising state pension, who did in 1974?
I cared for children 1982-1988 but was abroad so no qualifying years. 1988 Back in the uk I had qualifying years 1988 -1998 due to claiming child benefits. (I had no idea I was contributing to my pension by claiming child benefit!).
1998 divorced, worried about my future without a share of ex’s work pension(s) (that was the normal back in the 1990s!), I was told by DWP (or the equivalent at the time?) by telephone that if I had ex-husband’s NIC code I could claim a state pension based on his contributions. C^^p! With huge retrospective thanks, I needed to earn an income so I went back to paid employment 1998 despite being single parent caring for 16, 14 and 12 year old, so unknown to me I was building up contributing years even though I didn’t know my state pension now depended on my NIC, not my exhusband’s. Sometime early naughties I learnt my retirement was due 2021, 47 years since I started paid work not 41, that’s a 15% increase to the length of my working life, a shock, but by then I knew I needed more, ie 35 qualifying years for full state pension so would have to work until 66 any old ways. I’m now retired but don’t have full state pension because I never have been able to make up those missing years of childcare when I was abroad and didn’t claim child benefit.
I tell my children and their spouses they need to make every effort to keep their pension entitlements equal year by year, even if that means the salary of the bigger earner contributes to pension contributions for the smaller earner.

Rant over. Power to the Waspis!

Signed sadly I do not hold out much hope.

Over 30,000. Thanks everyone.

Signed and shared with others.

Signed.

Signed, thank you for sharing link.

Signed but not holding my breath.

Signed 👍

"women will always put up with being rubbished or just die"

I agree mae13.

I’ve always thought there’s a sexist / misogynist element to this issue. I don’t think any government would have, so rapidly, increased the pension age of millions of men by 6 years!

But of course, they thought that 50’s born women would just do their ‘womanly duty’, shut up and suck it up.

They were wrong!