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TNO’s Social Personnel Fund (SPF) wants to help you The holidays are around the corner, and many of us are planning some time off, whether a short or long period. But not everyone can, simply because their financial situation doesn’t allow it. But did you know that the SPF can lend a hand here? Please send us an email explaining why you’re unable to take a holiday and we may be able to do something to help you recharge your batteries.

Please email: spf@tno.nl If you need help from the SPF for any other reason, please contact us so we can see what we can do for you. SPF can help in various ways: you can obtain an interest-free loan from us, we can contribute towards your holiday, and you can use a budget coach for free.

If you’re not a member yet, you can join our fund for just €0.50 per month. By doing so, you’ll not only help yourself but also your current and former colleagues. You can also send us an e-mail about this.

Regards from SPF.

More information Email the SPF Secretary, Ginie Roerdink: spf@tno.nl.

You can also read more about the options and membership of SPF on Pension Fund the website under Documents.

Meet the Board We are an official workplace pension fund. This definition differs greatly from a pension fund for a whole industry or for all civil servants such as ABP, for example. We’re not too big, and we have the advantage of being close to our members.

These people represent employees, pension beneficiaries, and the employers on the Board of the Pension Fund. All interests are represented: those of employees (four members), employers (four members), and pension beneficiaries (two members).

Together, they are ultimately responsibility for the policy and administration of the pension scheme. The policy preparation work is carried out by the administration office, which also takes care of risk management and coordination between asset management and pension management. The Board and the administration office focus on strategy and policy together.

First of all, we would like to thank everyone who took part in the survey. We appreciate it greatly, because that is how we can improve our service. How high are satisfaction and trust? What do you think of the information and services we provide? Here are some of the highlights.

Satisfaction Pension beneficiaries reported a higher figure and tend to have a very positive perception of the Pension Fund, as well as a high level of trust in it. This comes as no surprise: they are already receiving their pension, which often means they have a more positive view. The majority of members still accruing their pension also felt positive and confident about the fund, which is great. Only a small percentage reported dissatisfaction, citing greater insight into pensions and a focus on needs as a way to improve this, so this is an area we can look to work on.

Trust Strong financial results, fund staff experience and expertise, and effective information help to build trust in the Pension Fund. This is also reflected in the results, with just one person dissatisfied with this.

We also saw in the results that members are concerned about their future pension under the new system. This boils down to a fear of the unknown, according to the survey. Proper communication on the new pension system is important. The new system is now in place, as law entered into force on 1 July 2023. More and more information will be available soon, including a webinar run by TNO Pension Fund on 11 October 2023.

Information and services The results show that the information provided by TNO Pension Fund is regularly read and reviewed, email being the most obvious method. There is definitely room for improvement too. More information about the choices and options when you retire would be welcome, so that we are looking into that. Overall, members are satisfied with the information and service we provide. Obviously we are happy with this.

All in all, these are results we can work with. We are also looking at the differences between certain age groups, so that we can focus on those.

Director of TNO Pension Fund for almost ten years

Kostijn van Gerven was director of TNO Pension Fund for about ten years and made a huge contribution to the fund's development. Sustainability was one of the issues that he helped put on the map. In April, we held a nice farewell reception to thank him also for his wonderful work with us.

‘I’ve been director for almost ten years. Ten years in which so much happened. It’s hard to summarize in a few sentences, but the main themes concerned the further professionalization of the pension fund management and the considerably higher requirements placed on funds. And that’s only right. After all, it’s about income for when you retire. It’s our job to ensure that this is properly arranged for over 17,500 families.’ Kostijn also thanked all of you. ‘For all the contact we’ve had over those ten years. For your trust in the fund. For allowing me to be your director for ten years,’ Kostijn also wrote in his last foreword for this spring’s Life & Pension.

Suzanne van Kooten succeeded Kostijn as the new director on 1 April 2023. After a period of settling in, she officially took over the baton from Kostijn. She’s certainly no stranger to the pension fund. In this issue of Life & Pension, she talks to us together with the new chair of the board, Nancy Westerlaken.

Former director of TNO Pension Fund Our former director of the pension fund, Joop Ruijgrok, died on 25 April 2023 at the age of 73. You will find an in memoriam section on our news site.

Role of eTNOs: the right to be heard In the previous edition of the Life & Pension, we reported that pension beneficiaries have a right to be heard through the eTNOs association. Specifically, this means that we can give comments and opinions on any plans proposed. The final decision-making process should also show how these opinions have been taken into consideration. We will formally exercise this right to be heard when the transition plan is in place, expected by the end of this year. This plan will describe what the new scheme will look like at TNO.

How we are exercising our right It is important that we are clear about what we think should be given particular attention, well before the transition plan is in place. We have been doing this, for example, in the workshops organized by the Pension Fund recently, but certainly also through contact with the social partners. Moreover, we are going to be engaging with the eTNO members as much as possible through progress updates in eTNOs Berichten and at information meetings, two of which have since been held.

TNO as the employer must give eTNOs the opportunity to exercise their right to be heard. In January, we sent a list of principles to the social partners. At the beginning of June, we added a written response to TNO Pension Fund’s opinion on the transition from the current pension system to the new one, as well as the choice of system.

We then discussed our concerns and expectations with both the Works Council and an employer delegation from TNO. We have seen that these talks help to refine certain points and remove ambiguities on both sides of the table. The social partners have since decided to go ahead with the transition and develop the solidarity premium scheme (SPR).

Key points for pension beneficiaries As a representative of pension beneficiaries, we have stated how crucial it is for pensioners and their partners to be able to expect a pension with a stable value in the future and that reductions should be avoided. It is also important for us to make up for overdue indexation and to ensure that pension payments start at the same level as the indexed benefit under the current system after the transition. Model calculations and scenario analyses must be carried out to show how far this can be met.

Initial calculations in September The initial calculations are expected at the end of September and will also be discussed with us. These talks will ultimately have to clarify whether certain groups are going to be unfairly advantaged or disadvantaged by the introduction of the new system and how this should be compensated for. It will also be a time for us to follow up on the discussions with the social partners on the basis of the more quantitative data and insights obtained from them. We hope to bring you more on this in the next edition of this magazine.