Tata and union chiefs reach deal to save Port Talbot steel jobs

This proposal comes eight months after Tata announced their original intention to sell their UK steel assets.

Starting next week, Tata Steel UK will start consultation on the proposal to close the British Steel Pension Scheme, with employees offered a defined contribution scheme in its place.

Subject to the structural de-risking and de-linking of the British Steel Pension Scheme fund from the business, Tata Steel UK will continue operations at its blast furnace in Port Talbot until 2021.

According to the trade union Community, a 10-year £1bn investment plan will support steel making at Port Talbot and secure the future of the downstream sites. Tata Steel UK said it has also offered an employment pact until 2021 which supports employees through future changes by investing in their skills to support further plant upgrades, automation and digital initiatives. According to Community, the pact is equivalent to an agreement at at Ijmuiden in the Netherlands, which includes a commitment to seek to avoid any compulsory redundancies for five years.