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Beds Pension Fund > Active members > Pension contributions when absent from work

Pension contributions when absent from work

If you are absent from work, it may affect your pension benefits.  Whether or not your pension is affected depends on the reason why you are absent from work.

If you are absent from work due to

  • sick leave
  • maternity, adoption or paternity leave or shared parental leave
  • being granted an unpaid leave of absence

 

The national LGPS member website has more information on how your pension is affected if you are away from work

 

Absence due to industrial action

If you are absent from work due to strike, the days when you are on strike do not count as membership in the LGPS and you will not build up pension on these days.  You can elect to buy back the ‘lost’ pension for any strike days by taking out an Additional Pension Contribution (APC) contract.

If you are in the main section of the LGPS at the time of the strike, the amount of ‘lost’ pension for a strike day is calculated as the amount of pay you would have received for that day had you not been on strike, divided by 49.  If you are in the 50/50 section of the LGPS at the time of the strike, the amount of 'lost' pension for a strike day is the amount of pay you would have received for that day had you not been on strike, divided by 98.

The amount it costs to buy back the lost pension depends on the amount of pension, how old you are and the length of the time you want to pay the APCs.

If you are absent due to strike, your employer will contact you about your option to buy back the lost pension.  If you do want to buy back the lost pension, your employer will provide you with the details of how much pensionable pay has been deducted from you for the strike day and you can then use this information to get a quote of how much it will cost you to buy back the lost pension.  You can get a quote for buying lost pension from the national LGPS member website.