For 87-year-old widow Mervis Stanley, the ordeal has caused extreme anxiety. After George’s death, she has to undergo extraordinary delays in getting her pension payments. The couple eventually married in Jamaica and moved to the United Kingdom, joining the post-war Windrush generation. During their time together across decades and cities, they created a world of love and support.
George came to the UK in the early 1960’s. He then made it possible for his brother Mervis and their daughter Annetta to follow him, only a year later. After initially going to settle in Birmingham, the family later moved to Reading, where George found a job in the Gillette razor factory. Upon retiring in 1995, they moved back to Jamaica. Mervis did later return to the UK, but after spending 40 years building his life and legacy in Jamaica, he has since returned to the island.
Since George’s death in 2006, Mervis Stanley has relied on a widow’s pension of less than £500/month. This assistance has made a big difference for her health. For that reason, in June 2024, the administrators of George’s pension scheme, Aon, suddenly stopped her payments. In doing so, this created a risk for her financial security.
Security One Bank called a meeting with Annetta Stanley, who has power of attorney for her mother, to discuss her mother’s financial affairs. She’s tried time and time again to fix it. Since February, she has tried to reach Aon at least a dozen times via phone, email and certified mail. Unfortunately, all of her hard work has gone unanswered. This failure to communicate has put both Mervis and Annetta in a dangerous bind.
Mervis Mervis Stanley contend with extra challenges because of health issues that require caregivers to help them eat, dress and attend medical appointments. With her financial lifeline severed, she is now exposed – with no clear path forward. Aon’s failure to respond has added to the anguish of bibliophiles as they continue to deal with the loss of these treasures.
The seven month delay in processing Mervis’s pension has been emotionally damaging. It has done much to cast doubt on whether our senior citizens can continue to count on these essential dollars for their sustenance. The Windrush generation has ongoing systemic prejudice to contend with. This latest incident only scratches the surface of pension administrative and accessibility issues.
Annetta was equally disheartened by the experience, stressing that urgency was key when it came to fixing her mother’s pension woes. “It is heartbreaking to see my mother go through this,” she stated. “She deserves to be treated with dignity and to receive the benefits she is entitled to after all these years.”
This unfortunate attack highlights the importance of timely and efficient communication between pension administrators and their beneficiaries. It’s most important for the most vulnerable of people, like the late Mervis Stanley. The family hopes that their plight will raise awareness about similar cases affecting others in the Windrush generation and beyond.
