Tata Steel faces potential strike action in the UK, as four British unions set a date to ballot members on industrial action, after the failure of talks on the steel giant’s “unnecessary and unjustified” plans to close a pension scheme.
The four unions, Community, Unite, GMB, and Ucatt, which represent the majority of workers at Tata Steel’s UK operations, said the ballot would be held between May 6 and 9, following the decision by Tata Steel to close the British Steel pension scheme. It follows around five months of unsuccessful talks between the company and the unions.
The unions said the decision to take action was made after the company failed to take up their offer to re-enter discussions. “Our members are determined to stand up for their pension and, therefore, we have no option but to proceed to an industrial action ballot in May,” said Roy Rickhuss, chair of the National Trade Union Steel Coordinating Committee in a statement to the press. The decision to close the pension scheme was against Tata’s values, which included improving the quality of life for the communities they served, he added.
“There can be no doubt about the strength of feeling among employees in opposition to Tata Steel Europe’s unnecessary and unjustified decision to close the British Steel pension scheme,” said Harish Patel, national officer for steel at the Unite Union.
In the UK, according to the Code of Practice on industrial action ballots, voters must be asked whether they want to take part in strike action or action short of a strike.
No date has yet been set for any potential industrial action, a spokesman for the unions said. Industrial action would require a simple majority of those voting to endorse it. “No decisions will be made till the ballot has taken place.” A spokesperson for Tata Steel said they had made proposals to the trade unions over the final salary pension scheme, which would have remained open to future accruals, subject to “modifications.”
After failing to reach an agreement with unions, the company launched a 60-day consultation period with members of the pension scheme on a proposal to close the scheme to future accruals, providing them an opportunity to comment or recommend alternatives. “The company remains committed to providing employees with competitive future pension provision,” the spokesperson said.