Union wins back pension rights

The ISTC community union announced last month that its series of one-day stoppages against steel group Caparo had successfully won back their pension rights.

A work-to-rule and then strike action had begun in July in protest at the company's decision to close its final salary pension scheme and replace it with an inferior and, for the company, lower cost stakeholder scheme. Unlike many other companies announcing pension scheme closures, Caparo did not restrict the change to new starters but closed the scheme to existing members as well.

The ISTC says that Caparo has now agreed to restore an amended version of the final salary scheme. Previously members saw their pension build up at 1/60th of pay each year and were contracted-out of the state earnings-related pension schemes (SERPS, now replaced with the state second pension, S2P).

The new rules mean that the scheme is now contracted-in with a lower accrual rate - 1/90th. However, the union says that the combination of the company pension and S2P will "provide members with a pension equivalent to that which they would have enjoyed previously."

ISTC general secretary Michael Leahy said he was delighted with the result and warned that: "Should any other ISTC members' final salary scheme be threatened we will offer them the same support as our members at Caparo."