Fujitsu UK workers vote to strike

Workers at Fujitsu in the UK have voted to take industrial action over jobs, pay and pension provisions, according to Unite.

The union claimed that 74 per cent of its members working at Fujitsu voted in favour of strike action, and that 92 per cent approved of "industrial action short of a strike".

Senior Unite representatives at Fujitsu will vote today on which course of action to take, and an announcement is expected later.

Fujitsu employs around 12,500 people around the UK, and it is understood that 4,000 will be affected by plans to close a particular pension scheme. Around 1,200 people have been told that their jobs are at risk.

Unite claims that Fujitsu intends to dismiss employees after the end of a consultation period in November, and offer them re-employment with a new contract containing the new pension clause. The union estimates that changes to the pension scheme will cost affected staff around 20 per cent of their total yearly package.

"Unite members are asking why they should lose their jobs and tighten their belts when last year the company paid out about £150m to shareholders and around £1.6m to two directors as compensation for loss of office," said Peter Skyte, Unite national officer for IT and communications.

"Fujitsu remains a highly profitable company and our members are insisting that it must treat them fairly and increase pay, provide decent pensions and consult meaningfully to minimise job losses and avoid compulsory redundancy."

Unite said that Fujitsu reported profits of £200m before tax last year, while its parent company had recently raised over $900m from the sale of shares.

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