Engineering news
MPs are set to grill Joe Greenwell, chairman of Ford UK, over the Visteon pensions dispute, it has emerged.
Greenwell will face a select group of MPs on 16 December, members of the Visteon Pension Action Group said today. Trade union Unite is also making progress in its legal action against Ford, they said.
The former Visteon workers face cuts to their pensions of up to 60% following the collapse of the automotive supplier’s British subsidiary last year. Some members of the Visteon pension scheme have already had their pensions cut by almost 40%. Visteon plants in Basildon, Enfield and Belfast were shut down with the loss of 600 jobs in April 2009. About 3,000 workers are affected by the pensions dispute.
Visteon was spun out of Ford in 2000. The former workers have consistently maintained that Ford guaranteed their terms and conditions of employment including pension pots at the time of Visteon’s creation. Ford strongly denies this.
Ford could be forced to take on a £350 million liability to plug the pensions shortfall if they accept Unite’s claim. Lobbying efforts of MPs are being led by Stephen Metcalfe, Conservative MP for Basildon and East Thurrock.
“Things aren’t moving forward as fast as we would like but we are making some major steps,” said Simon Harding of the Visteon Pension Action Group. “This includes the legal action launched by Unite. Although Ford is contesting it, we believe the evidence is in our favour. It seems to strengthen our case.”
It is understood that Metcalfe quizzed Greenwell over the Visteon dispute at the Conservative Party Conference in September. “Greenwell did not know how to respond,” a source claimed.
Metcalfe’s support follows an early day motion tabled in Parliament by Siân James, Labour MP for Swansea East, expressing concern at the way the Visteon pensioners have been treated.
Harding said there was now awareness of a “bigger picture” about the dispute among MPs.