Opera members ballot on pensions
BECTU's members in the Royal Opera House are voting in a consultative ballot on changes to their final-salary pension scheme.
The ballot follows union negotiations over planned changes to pension benefits, including a controversial formula under which only part of each year's pay increase would count towards pensions.
In talks during the first week of February, ROH management agreed to drop this element of their proposals, in return for union acceptance of three other changes: an extra contribution to the scheme from staff equal to 2% of salary; closure of the scheme to new members; and, a cut in the cap on pension increases from 5% to 2.5%.
Efforts to spare lower-paid staff from the effect of the changes were rebuffed by management.
Negotiators have recommended that members should accept the improved package of changes, with the advice that it is "the best that can be achieved through negotiations".
Voting ends on February 23, with the proviso that if members reject the package they will be balloted for industrial action.
Letter to BECTU members at the ROH
7 February 2007
Dear Colleague
Further to the house meeting of 7 February I am writing to confirm Management's final offer in relation to the final salary pension scheme.
You may remember from previous correspondence that Management initially proposed to change:
- the pension in payment from RPI pay up to 5% to RPI pay up to 2.5%;
- that the employees would have to pay an additional 2% contribution from the 1 April 2007;
- the final salary scheme will be closed to new employees from the 1 April 2007;
- that any salary increase agreed between BECTU and the Management would be restricted to a maximum of only 2% for pension purposes. This would mean that if we negotiated a 5% pay increase all members would get is 5%, however 2% would apply to your pensionable salary.
Following the previous house meeting it was agreed that we would advise the management that in order to keep the final salary scheme open to current staff, we would accept points 1, 2 and 3 above, however, we could not accept point 4 in relation to restricted pensionable salary increases.
Following further negotiations with Management I can now confirm that they are prepared to allow the full salary increase each year to be pensionable. However, any increments or promotions would not count towards future pensionable salary. Therefore going forward the pensionable salary you have on the 1 April 2007 will be increased in line with the standard BECTU agreement.
At the house meeting yesterday, I agreed to go back to Management to raise the issue of the lower paid who are currently working their way through the incremental system. I am sorry to advise you that Management are not prepared to amend their proposal any further. They have made the point that only 15 people in the final salary scheme earn less than £25,000 per year.
Bearing in mind the financial position of the scheme and the fact that the Management made good a deficit on the last tri-annual review, the negotiating committee believes that the current offer is the best that can be achieved through negotiations and we are therefore recommending acceptance. Included with this letter is a ballot paper and a pre-paid envelope. Please return it no later than the 23 February 2007. If you vote to reject this offer then you must be prepared to take part in extensive industrial action in order to shift Management's position further.
Yours sincerely
Gerry Morrissey
General Secretary