Millions of women born in the 1950s are thought to have been affected when their state pension age rose to align with men at 65, and a subsequent increase to 66. Many of those affected have argued they were not provided with ample notice regarding this, and have suffered financially and emotionally.
WASPI (Women Against State Pension Inequality) is just one of several groups campaigning to have their voices heard on the matter.
Hundreds of women from various groups attended Parliament Square this month to draw attention to their cause.
Amongst them was Janice Dale, a 65-year-old woman who was furious at the way 1950s-born women have been impacted.
She told Express.co.uk: “I was born in 1957, and I am still waiting for the letter to tell me I will not be getting my pension at 60 – luckily, I am 66 at the end of the month so I will get something then.
READ MORE: WASPI woman recalls moment she discovered state pension age change
“But I’ve waited six extra years for it. The Government owes me £58,812 in stolen pension.
“That’s my pension, and I still work, so I’ve paid in my National Insurance contributions for the past six years as well.
“Also, I have a workplace pension I’ve also been paying into over that time.
“If I got my pension at 60, I wouldn’t have had to pay any National Insurance.”
Ms Dale is referring to the rule which states those over state pension age do not have to pay National Insurance contributions.
However, with a rising state pension age, less people are eligible for this exemption.
“So with all of that in mind, they’ve robbed me twice. Three times if you include my workplace pension. We know the state pension age isn’t going to return to 60, and that’s not what we’re campaigning for. But we want our just rights. We’ve paid in for all this time – it’s only fair.”
Ms Dale maintained she received a letter from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in 2006, informing her she would receive a state pension of approximately £180 per week, once she reached age 60.
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However, she said this was the “last correspondence” she received from the DWP on the matter.
The WASPI woman continued: “Lots of ladies made financial decisions based on the context they would get their pension at 60 – but then that didn’t happen.
“And yet many of us are still waiting to be told, in writing, legally and morally, that we aren’t getting our pension.”
This was a sentiment shared by Pauline Moyer, another WASPI campaigner at the event, who weighed in with her perspective.
She also argued she did not receive enough notice about the state pension age changes, which impacted her day to day life.
Ms Moyer took a voluntary redundancy package to retire early, based on the fact she believed she would receive a state pension at 60.
But she soon had to take a part-time job, waiting for her pension to be paid “eventually”.
She added: “The fact this has happened has created poverty for lots of women.
“They don’t have a pension, they can’t claim benefits so they’ve had to sell houses or live off their husbands – which in this day and age just isn’t right.
“To work to 66 is not right or healthy for anyone – and that goes for men as well. It’s about being equal for everyone.”
A DWP spokesperson previously told Express.co.uk: “The Government decided over 25 years ago it was going to make the state pension age the same for men and women.
“Both the High Court and Court of Appeal have supported the actions of the DWP under successive governments dating back to 1995 and the Supreme Court refused the claimants permission to appeal.”
