07/11/2005

Gas engineers vote on strike action

More than 5,000 British Gas engineers are to be balloted on strike action in a row over pensions.

The GMB union said that 5,500 of its members would be balloted in the run-up to Christmas over plans to close the firm’s final salary pension scheme to new employees from April 2006.

The union said that an unofficial consultative ballot had shown that members were opposed to the plans and wanted to protect the pension rights of new employees.

Brian Strutton, GMB General Secretary, said that British Gas had been notified about the ballot. He said: “I doubt that GMB members will be up for selling off the pension rights of future British Gas engineers and are ready to take industrial action to secure the scheme for everyone for the future. However, we have offered the company to review the position at the next pension’s valuation and that seems to us to be reasonable.

“Keeping in mind that the weather forecasters are saying that the winter is going to be extremely cold then we need to get this sorted out soon.”

(KMcA/SP)


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