The former ASW Cardiff steelworkers have taken their case to Europe at the invitation of Plaid Cymru European leader Jill Evans MEP and will today (Wednesday 5 November) lodge a petition at the European Parliament.

They will present the petition on behalf of former steelworkers whose pensions were lost when their employer ASW (Allied Steel & Wire) went into receivership earlier this year with the loss of a thousand jobs in Cardiff and Sheerness. The petition seeks to compel the UK government to implement an EU Directive to protect employees' pension entitlements if their employer goes bust.

At present the workers - some of whom have been paying into the scheme for over 40 years - face losing thousands of pounds, some have also been given to understand that they may receive only ten per cent of their full entitlements. Today's move follows Monday's announcement that trades unions Amicus and the ISTC are set to sue the UK Government over the lost pension rights.

The petition will be submitted by John Benson, a former worker at ASW's Cardiff plant. Mr Benson is in Brussels at the invitation of Welsh Euro-MP Jill Evans (Plaid Cymru the Party of Wales) and is accompanied by Owen John Thomas AM (whose constituency includes ASW's Cardiff plant) and Adam Price MP who has led calls at Westminster for the British government to implement EU rules on pension rights.

Speaking from Brussels, Jill Evans MEP, who represents the whole of Wales in the European Parliament, said,

"It's a disgrace that many workers have lost what amounts to their life savings because the UK government has failed to protect their pensions. European law provides for this protection but it is not being implemented in the UK. We're submitting this petition today, asking the European Parliament and Commission to make sure that UK workers' are afforded the pension rights they deserve."

Note

The petition calls on the European Parliament and European Commission to take action to compel the UK Government to fully implement Article 8 of the 1980 Insolvency Directive which requires member states to provide for the protection of employees' pension entitlements in the event of the insolvency of their employer.

The group will meet a representative of the European Commission before formally presenting the petition to Theo Bouwman MEP, Chair of the Employment and Social Affairs Committee. Interviews and pictures may be arranged via the contacts listed below.

Diwedd/Ends.