On the go: Workers at Nissan’s Sunderland plant will stage a socially distanced protest on Saturday against the carmaker’s proposal to close its defined benefit scheme.
The protest is being organised by the Unite union, which criticised Nissan’s proposal announced in June to close the Nissan Pension Plan to future accrual, which would affect 1,800 car workers at the Sunderland plant.
At the time, the union warned that the need for efficiencies should not take priority over protecting members’ plans and financial security in retirement.
A Nissan spokesperson said: “We aim to provide competitive benefits to our highly valued staff, but these have to be balanced with the long-term sustainability of our business. The level of company investment needed to maintain the DB pension plan has grown to unsustainable levels.
“For this reason, we are in discussions with affected employees and their representatives about the proposed closure of the plan.”
In a sign that the company’s consultation over the proposal is not going as smoothly as it might have hoped, Unite has publicly criticised what it calls the carmaker’s “disdain and disregard” for its workers.
Nissan’s apparent refusal to offer an industry standard lump sum, commonly provided in the event of scheme closure, drew particular ire.
In a statement, Unite national officer Steve Bush said: “The opportunistic closure of the DB scheme will reduce the financial security of nearly 2,000 of the company’s longest-serving and loyal staff by tens of thousands of pounds.
“These staff are facing an unexpected and gaping hole in their financial security during retirement, but rather than attempt to find a compromise, Nissan has met their concerns with disdain and disregard,” he argued.
“Our members are incredibly angry at the company’s disgraceful behaviour. Without substantial movement during consultation, this dispute could result in the first ever industrial action being taken at Nissan in Sunderland.”
