Outsourced employees are kicked off pension schemes

Employers are exploiting outsourced workers by removing them from their occupational pension schemes, it was claimed at the TUC conference.

Tony Lennon, president of broadcasting union Bectu, said the absence of pension guidance in TUPE (the Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment) regulations allowed some employers to exploit staff.

“TUPE is silent on the crucial area of pensions,” he said. “And it’s being used as a back-door route to kick staff off their pension scheme once they’ve been transferred.”

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Lennon called on the government to strengthen the regulations and clarify the pensions issue. He also expressed concern over pensions for freelance workers.

“The White Paper does not apply to freelancers,“ he said. “They are not quite employees and not quite self-employed, so they don’t qualify.”