The three trade unions at the heart of the UK steel sector, namely the GMB, Unite and Community, have responded positively to the deal struck with Tata Steel UK (see related article). The unions have disclosed more details of the results of the negotiations finalised on 7 December. “… Hard struck, but welcome,” the employee representatives called the deal in a statement sent to Kallanish.

There will be a guaranteed minimum five year commitment to two-blast furnace steelmaking [… at Port Talbot], with a further commitment to reinvest in blast furnace 5 as part of a capex investment plan.

The deal includes a jobs pact equivalent to Tata’s agreement with steelworkers at Ijmuiden in the Netherlands, which includes a commitment to seek to avoid any compulsory redundancies for five years.

A comprehensive ten year £1 billion ($1.3 billion) investment plan will be implemented to support steelmaking at Port Talbot and secure the future of the downstream sites.

Tata Steel will begin a consultation on the closure of the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS) to future accrual. The company will replace it with a so-called defined contribution scheme with maximum contributions of 10% from the company and 6% from employees, the trade unions confirm.