Pension scheme closure for Midland BMW workers
LUXURY car maker BMW has announced plans to close its two final-salary pension schemes which would impact around 5,000 staff.
Trade union Unite has vowed to fight the German brand over planned changes as the manufacturer begins consulting with affected employees, including those at its plant in Hams Hall, Coleshill.
BMW intends to close the two schemes to future benefits from June next year with Unite vowing to fight the proposals “tooth and claw”.
Meetings have taken place with pension committees and shop stew- ards in Hams Hall and at the BMW’s factories in Oxford, Swindon and Chichester.
Unite has around 900 members working at Hams Hall with 640 in BMW’s affected pension scheme. The 60-day consultation between staff and management began this week.
Unite said it was also planning to hold a consultative ballot to gauge members’ opinions during the consultation in order to show the company the union “intends to fight this plan by whatever means possible”.
National officer for automotive Tony Murphy said: “It is clear that our members will be losing thousands of pounds a year in retirement incomes if this proposal is allowed to go ahead. This is plainly unacceptable and Unite will be fighting this proposal tooth and claw.
“It is becoming increasingly too easy for highly profitable, multinational companies to energetically salami-slice workers’ pensions in pursuit of even greater profits.
“BMW is blaming both the increase in national insurance payments and the cost of future liabilities as to why the final salary pension has become unaffordable, although, ironically, profits are still rising in the last two quarters.”
The company wants the staff to join its defined contribution scheme which was launched in 2014, using movements in the stock market, and now has about 2,000 members.
A statement from BMW said: “Many UK companies have significant pension fund shortfalls in their defined benefit schemes and the cost and risk associated with these schemes is making them increasingly unsustainable and unaffordable for both members and companies.”