FINAL SALARY SCHEMES STATUS

I

Last Updated 

Thursday, March 04, 2010

 

Home  A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  XYZ

 

Name: IBM 
Location: Havant
Employees/Deferred/pensioners 20,000
Windup: Closed to New Employees
Fund:
Comments: Feb 2006: Now it has been confirmed that the US company is not shutting down the final salary scheme, but is planning to reduce the rate of growth of pensionable earnings for current workers who choose to stay in it. From April, only 50% of any increase in salary will be counted as pensionable, according to a letter from the chairman of the scheme trustees that has been sent to some current and ex-employees.

At the same time, IBM is offering staff the "opportunity" to switch into the company's money purchase scheme with the carrot of "enhanced company contribution rates". It is also making changes to existing pensions which will mean smaller inflation-linked increases. However, the company is guaranteeing that increases will be awarded annually for the next 15 years.

7 July 2009: More than 5,000 UK workers could lose their rights to a defined benefit pension scheme under plans being considered by the company. An email to staff from Brendon Riley, IBM’s UK and Ireland general manager, said the pension fund was being re-evaluated because of growing liabilities that were threatening the company’s future performance. If the closure proceeds, it will affect more than a quarter of IBM’s 20,000 UK staff.

17 August 2009: IBM is to brace itself for a backlash from thousands of employees against the company's plans to close its final salary pension schemes to future accrual and to alter the terms of its early retirement scheme.

14 January 2010 See Hansard for parliamentary debate

 

Name: Idem Furniture Ltd and Hille Ltd
Location:
Employees/Deferred/pensioners
Windup: 26 March 2002
Fund:
Comments: Sovereign Trustees Ltd was formally appointed as the joint administrators of the scheme on 10 Oct 2002 S.T.Ltd Is the trustee company of Addleshaw Booth & Co solicitors

 

Name: ICAEW
Location:
Accountancy
Employees/Deferred/pensioners
Windup: Plan to close final salary scheme to all members
Fund: 
Comments: November 2009: The ICAEW, has launched a consultation with its employees to axe its final salary pension scheme as a result of a £19.3m deficit. Those signed up to the scheme received letters last week detailing the institute’s plans.
Those affected will be members who joined the scheme before 2000, the year it was closed to new members, and will be offered membership of a defined contributions scheme from 31 May 2010 if the consultations lead to the scheme being scrapped.

 

Name: IFI Richardsons
Location:
Employees/Deferred/pensioners
Windup: 
Fund:
Comments:

 

Name: Imerys (formerly English China Clay)
Location: Cornwall
Employees/Deferred/pensioners 2,500 members
Windup: 
Fund:
Comments: The T&G have pledged to do whatever necessary - including a ballot for industrial action - to fight the company's changes. As a result of the changes by Imerys, 2,500 pension scheme members will see their pension benefits downgraded which will be the equivalent of up to one third of the value of the pension for many workers and as much as 40% for others. The company have also closed the scheme to all new employees. The moves have angered union members, particularly as the company took a three year pensions' holiday and refused the advice of the trustees in 2002 to start paying contributions again. 25 May 2006 Workers at china clay giant Imerys have voted to go on strike over proposed changes to pensions.

 

 

Name: Imperial Home Decor Group
Location: Darwen, Morecombe & Blackburn Lancs
Wallpaper
Employees/Deferred/pensioners 4,000
Windup: 16th Oct 2003
Fund:

Comments: 6 May 2008: A high court judgement last Thursday could mean further delays with pensions lawyers Eversheds hoping for the government to make the Financial Assistance Scheme – set up to compensate members of collapsed company pensions – more inclusive. Imperial had a hybrid pension scheme combining elements of defined benefit and defined contribution arrangements. The scheme has assets worth around £120 million and requires around £190 million to meet future liabilities. While it was registered with the FAS in 2005, an ‘underpinning guarantee’ associated with the defined contribution element of the pensions means that most of these benefits do not qualify for compensation under the scheme. And although the money was pooled with defined benefits funds, these benefits were bottom of the pile when the firm went into liquidation and were not entitled to the same levels of protection as defined benefit pensions. ‘The significant finding is for members who thought that they had money purchase pots which normally are kept in tact during wind up,’ said Giles Orton at Eversheds Pension Trustees, representing the case. March 2010 Click here for the website giving the latest status. 

 

Name: Independent Insurance
Location:
Employees/Deferred/pensioners
Windup:
Fund:
Comments:

 

Name: Ineos
Location: Grangemouth Oil Refinery
Employees/Deferred/pensioners 1,200
Windup: Plan to close final salary scheme to new workers
Fund:
Comments: April 2008  Ineos plans to modify its final salary pension scheme, including closing it to new workers and seeking contributions from existing members of the scheme.

 

Name: Institute of Mechanical Engineers
Location:
Employees/Deferred/pensioners
Windup: Still solvent
Fund:
Comments: The Institute of Mechanical Engineers has offered 100 of its former staff cash to leave its scheme.

 

Name: Interserve
Location: UK Services and Building
Employees/Deferred/pensioners
Windup: Still solvent Closing DB scheme to 900 staff
Fund:
Comments: August 2009: Interserve is to close its defined benefit pension scheme to future accrual for around 900 employees despite posting a 18.7% increase in interim pre-tax profits.

The support services and building company, which employs around 26,900 staff in the UK, will implement the changes for affected members by the end of the year as part of efforts to manage the scheme's deficit, which is expected to be around £250 million.

 

Name: Interwood
Location:
Employees/Deferred/pensioners
Windup:
Fund:
Comments:

 

Name: Invaro
Location: Princes Dock, Merseyside
Litigation funding
Employees/Deferred/pensioners est 20,000 employees lost pensions
Windup: Company collapse Summer 2004
Fund:
Comments: Invaro collapsed in the summer of 2004 with debts estimated at £85m. The firm was set up to provide funding for law firms who took on no-win, no-fee compensation claim cases.

 

Name: Irish Fertilizers (IFA)
Location: Belfast
Employees/200 Deferred/500+pensioners
Windup: In hands of liquidator since Oct/Nov 2002
Fund:
Comments: ''Irish Fertilisers'' IFA is named ''Irish Fertiliser Industries'' and often known as IFI.

Within Northern Ireland the company was known by the marketing name ''Richardsons Fertilisers''.

The company is not solvent having been in the hands of the liquidator since October/November 2002, and expects to make a payout to creditors (unsecured) of circa 40%.

However the owners (Irish Government 51% shareholding / Imperial Chemical Industries 49% shareholding) are NOT thought to be insolvent.

 

Name: ITV
Location: Ivax Quays, Albert Basin, Royal Docks, London E16 2QJ
Employees 1,049/Deferred 11,572/pensioners 13,332
Windup: Still solvent. Closing final salary scheme
Fund: 
Comments: Nov 2006: The broadcaster is planning to close its final salary pension scheme to existing members, having already closed it to new members this summer. Around a quarter of its 6,000-strong workforce would be affected. ITV closed its final-salary scheme to new members in July and could bring in the changes for existing members by April. 

August 2009: ITV admits that its "scheme funding" pension deficit ballooned to £646m in December 2008 – more than three times the £178m it stated in March. In March, ITV gave the pension deficit figure for December 2008. In the letter to defined-benefit pension holders, the broadcaster is effectively asking members to forgo 40pc of the inflation-linked increases of their future pension entitlement. ITV said in the letter: "ITV is offering pensioners of the defined-benefit section the opportunity to receive an uplift to their pension now in exchange for giving up future annual increases. Other members of the defined-benefit section will be given this when they retire." The proposal is designed to help ITV cut £75m to £100m from its pension deficit, allows members of the company's final salary scheme to take a higher annual payout in exchange for abandoning their pension's link with the rate of inflation. August 2009:  More than 10,000 members of the ITV final salary pension scheme could receive proposals asking them to accept an increase in the value of their pensions in return for giving up future inflationary increases. ITV admits that its scheme funding deficit rose to £646m in December last year, rather than the £178m that was reported in March. There are 13,332 members of the scheme already receiving a pension – 10,332 of these people have received letters from ITV so far. The 11,572 deferred members and 1,049 who are still contributing to the scheme will receive similar offers when they reach retirement

 

Name: IVAX Pharmaceutical Uk Ltd formerly operating under the name of 'Norton Healthcare'
Location: Ivax Quays, Albert Basin, Royal Docks, London E16 2QJ
Employees/Deferred/pensioners
Windup: 
Fund: Solvent when wound up
Comments: 

Home  A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  XYZ

The information on this website has been supplied by members of the various final salary schemes listed and others.  Accuracy is important to us, but errors are inevitable as the subject itself is an extremely emotive one so the information on this site cannot be guaranteed. We hope that we have reflected the current situation in as an unbiased way as possible.