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Jobs to go as TOG loses major deal with Boots
Page 7
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III by Guy Sheppard
Logistics giant TDG is to axe at least 50 drivers' jobs after losing a long-established contract with retailer Boots.
The announcement coincides with a decision to scrap final salary pensions for new TDG employees from the beginning of April.
The Boots contract, which is handled by five depots, is being transferred to an unnamed contractor from August.
The axed drivers either trunk goods from Nottingham or Mossend, near Glasgow, or are based at Boots' regional distribution centres in Basingstoke, Dartford and Greenwich.
The new contractor will have to offer all the drivers new jobs under transfer of undertakings (TUFT) regulations.
A TDG spokesman says its multi-dent depot in Mossend, where 10 of the drivers work for Boots, will continue to operate as normal.
Boots uses two other operators, Clearway Distribution and West Transport, for trunking goods from Nottingham but it is unclear whether they will take over the TDG contract, which is thought to date back nearly 40 years.
Boots has declined to comment on the move.
The decision to switch from a final salary to a money purchase pension scheme will not affect arrangements for existing employees but is seen as a big blow to union leaders.
The Transport & General Workers Union is already fighting plans t Exel and Wincanton to switch to money purcha: schemes where a pension's end value is total dependent on stock market performance (CM' 15 January).
Ron Webb, now permanent T&,G national se retary for road transport, says: "Pensions will t at the forefront of our agenda. We see such eh sures as a retrograde step in terms of firms pn viding drivers and other staff with decent terms employment.
"Companies need to face the reality that order to attract new recruits in a sector with suc a skills shortage they have to provide good pei sion schemes."
• Email: guy.sheppard@blueyonderco.uk