Employers have joined the main trade unions in supporting the planned pension scheme changes which are due to take effect from 2014.
The Local Government Association (LGA) said its members have followed the unions in backing the changes to the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) in England and Wales. No less than 93% of the local government employers voted in favour.
The deal will see the pension age rise in line with the state pension age to at least 68 and will cut the combined contribution rate for staff and employers from 21.7% of staff salaries to 19.5%. This will save councils an estimated figure of £600m a year.
It is now up to the communities and local government secretary Eric Pickles to decide if he accepts the proposals, his decision is expected to be due in October.
In a statement LGA chairman Sir Merrick Cockell said: "Our approach throughout this process has been to reform the pension scheme so it is fair to our staff, affordable for council tax payers and has a viable long-term future.
"The overwhelming level of support for these proposals is very encouraging and demonstrates the commitment amongst employers in local government to a manageable scheme that gives staff a decent pension when they retire."
Unison national secretary for local government, Heather Wakefield said: "These were tough negotiations, but with a focus on the majority of members who earn less than £21,000 a year, we have ensured that current LGPS members can afford to remain in the scheme and those who could not afford to do so to date can now join via a low cost option. This is vital for many of our members who have suffered a decline in earnings as a result of the coalition's pay freeze policies."
According to GMB's national secretary for public services, Brian Strutton, reaching this agreement means that the next stage for the LGPS would be to "develop better scheme governance to ensure value for money, performance improvement and cost stability going forward".
First published 30.08.2012
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