Unions blasts bank over rising cost of pensions

TRADE unions last night slammed Clydesdale Bank over changes to its pension scheme that will force up to 4,000 staff to shell out as much as 9 per cent of their salary in contributions from 2014 to keep current benefits, writes Martin Flanagan.

The lender – which, along with Yorkshire Bank, forms the UK arm of National Australia Bank (NAB) – said members of the presently non‑contributory, defined-benefit pension scheme will have to pay 3 per cent of their salary in 2012, going up to 9 per cent two years later.

It is a further blow to workers at the group, where the final-salary pension scheme was shut down in 2006 to be replaced with a less-attractive career‑average scheme. However, that scheme was still non‑contributory when it was introduced.

Banking union Unite hit out at the timing of the latest changes at Clydesdale, where the average salary is £29,000.

Unite national officer David Fleming said the move would “trigger hardship for employees” and was a “real blow”. He said it was wrong “to introduce changes that will require staff at National Australia Bank to ultimately