Royal Bank of Scotland announces changes to final salary pension scheme
The Royal Bank of Scotland has today announced significant changes to the company's final salary pension scheme which will see benefits reduced in the future. This comes at a time when the UK government appears to be placing more pressure upon UK banks to control their cost bases and give taxpayer's better value for money, where taxpayer's money has been used to acquire shares. New chief executive Stephen Hester avoided the option of closing the final salary scheme completely and instead decided to downgrade the scheme and cap future pension payments.
Despite the fact this is by far and away the most sensible move announced by Royal Bank of Scotland for some time, the shadow of Sir Fred Goodwin still hangs heavy over the group and those pensioners who will see their future incomes capped will no doubt feel aggrieved. There's also some concern that those in the boardroom, who have recently been allotted potentially millions upon millions of shares, are enjoying the fruits of the recovery while the everyday workers at Royal Bank of Scotland share the misery.
Is it time that high-ranking directors of public companies also paid the price with regards to pension arrangements?
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