Union fears for future of Telent's pension scheme
A Union has warned of the dangers posed to pension funds when private equity firms acquire them alongside a business purchase.
Trade union Unite has highlighted the case of communications infrastructure firm Telent. Previously a Marconi business, the company was acquired by Guernsey-based private equity firm the Pension Corporation last year.
Telent’s pension scheme, which includes more than 60,000 former Marconi employees, is now also owned by the Pension Corporation.
Unite said the corporation had not made its intentions clear to the Telent workforce and the members of the former Marconi pension scheme. Peter Skyte, a Unite national officer, said he was concerned the corporation was attracted to Telent’s £520 million escrow account which is meant to be used to top up any deficits in the scheme.
He said it was possible that the corporation would now sell Telent to recoup the £400 million it spent on buying it, and raid the funds for “short-term private gain”. He added: “These firms do not necessarily have the long-term interests of the members of the pension scheme at heart.”
Telent said the pension scheme was run by its trustees, and that they were engaged in “constructive discussions” with the Pension Corporation over the future of the scheme.
© PE Publishing, 19 March 2008
