LONDON, April 17 /PRNewswire/ -- A pensions dispute involving 1200 workers at a petrochemical site in
Scotland is set to threaten fuel supplies to the whole of the UK.
Unite members at the Ineos plant in Grangemouth are to strike on Sunday
27th and Monday 28th April in protest at plans to close the final salary
pension scheme to new entrants and reduce provision for existing scheme
members.
The company's pension change proposals follow its' stripping of GBP40
million of assets from the employee pension scheme which had been one of the
highest funded pension schemes in the whole of the UK. The company has
already moved to reduce its contributions to the scheme and has made other
detrimental changes for employees, including introducing financial penalties
for early retirement. These changes were made against the wishes of the
pension scheme members during the six month consultation.
97% of Unite members at the Grangemouth plant voted to strike to protect
their final salary pension scheme. The UK's entire oil and petrol supply
depends on the Grangemouth site staying at full production. Unite has warned
that a two day strike at the plant will shut the North Sea and effectively
stop production at the plant for up to a month. This will have an immediate
impact on all fuel supplies, including aviation fuel, across the whole of the
UK.
Unite say the company has no grounds for closing the pension scheme
which, despite a massive reduction in company contributions and the company's
stripping of GBP40 million in pension assets, is in surplus by 11%. When
Ineos bought the site from BP in 2005 the pension scheme was funded to 115%
and is now funded to 120%.
Unite Joint National Officer for the petrochemicals industry, Phil
McNulty, said:
"We are outraged by the company's plans to close the Ineos workers final
salary pension scheme when it has taken GBP40 million from the scheme and
slashed its own contributions. Despite the company's actions the scheme is
still highly profitable and the Grangemouth site makes GBP1 million every day
so why should our members pay for Ineos' greed?
"The existing pension arrangement is excellent and the fact that the
business is highly successful means that the Ineos pension scheme should be
one of the best and the most secure in the country.
"Industrial action is never desirable but this is the only possible
sanction against a company prepared to make such an audacious attack against
our members."
Linda McCulloch, Unite National Officer said:
"Grangemouth alone makes up to GBP3m profit every per day yet Ineos is
proposing to make changes to its' pension scheme that will reduce our
members' pension pay outs by an average GBP10,000 per year.
"This scheme is affordable and well funded. There are no excuses for the
company's actions.
"Any blame for the disruption bound to be caused by strike action needs
to be laid firmly at the company's door."
Ineos is the country's biggest privately owned chemical manufacturer. It
plans to close its' final salary pension scheme to new employees and open an
inferior money purchase plan.
Ineos acquired the BP Grangemouth site on the 25th of October 2005. Ineos
is the biggest privately owned chemical business in the UK and the fourth
largest in the world with a turnover of GBP45 billion per year.
Notes to Editors
1) The owner of the Ineos Group, Jim Ratcliffe was ranked
45th in the Times 2007 Rich List and is estimated to be worth GBP1.1
bn.
2. The combined Ineos and Innovene operations, both owned by Jim
Ratcliffe, made more than GBP414m profits in 2005. The net assets of the
combined group stand at about GBP6.5 billion. Ratcliffe also has a GBP100m
stake in the separate Ineos Chlor operation.
3. The pension scheme requires only GBP16 million a year funding by the
company.
Unite the Union
