Unite has announced plans to protest Unilever’s AGM in London tomorrow, over the company’s proposals to wind up its final salary pension scheme.

The union said Unilever promised to keep the scheme when it announced its decision to close it to new members in 2008. However, the company has announced it is to consult on a plan to close the scheme to existing workers, and transfer current members to a combined career average and defined contribution investing plan with effect from January 2012.

Announcing the move last month, Unilever UK and Ireland chair Amanda Sourry said the changes have been proposed to help tackle the “increasingly unaffordable and unsustainable” costs associated with the company's UK pension fund.

“Our proposals have been designed to be balanced and flexible, with the aim of ensuring that all of our people can continue to expect a valuable and competitive pension benefit into the future. Going forward, one of the principles we want to establish is that both the responsibility and risks involved in saving for retirement are more equally shared between Unilever and its UK employees. Like many other companies which have already taken similar action, we must face up to this difficult issue now so we can continue to work to ensure Unilever remains a winning and competitive business in the UK,” Sourry said.

However, in a statement released today Unite said Unilever is a successful global company, and can afford to pay workers what they expected under the final salary scheme.

Unite's national officer, Jennie Formby, said workers are “horrified” by the proposed pension changes, and that the move will make a “massive difference” to workers’ retirements.

“This attack is just greed by Unilever. Shutting down a decent pension scheme will wash the retirement plans of 5,000 workers down the drain. This is absolutely and fundamentally wrong – and they deserve better."

Formby said union members “will not back down” until these changes are stopped.

“Unilever must understand – the company is not going to get away with this without a fight.”

Unilever is establishing a consultation body to represent its employees in the UK, including those already represented by trade unions, namely Unite, GMB and USDAW. A consultation process is to be run from June for up to 90 days.

The company did not wish to comment on Unite’s announcement when contacted this afternoon.

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