§ Lord Lea of Crondallasked Her Majesty's Government:
What are the current obligations in United Kingdom law arising from European Union Directive 80/987 in regard to the rights of employees for occupational pension benefits in bankrupt companies. [HL3774]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Baroness Hollis of Heigham)On 20 October 1980 the Council of European Communities adopted Council Directive 80/987/EEC on the approximation of the laws of the member states relating to the protection of employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer.
Each member state was required to set up a "guarantee institution" (the National Insurance Fund in the UK) to meet certain debts—for example, holiday pay and deductions from employees' 111WA Salaries—owed to former employees of insolvent employers. The provisions in question are now contained in the Employment Rights Act 1996 and the Pension Schemes Act 1993.
Specifically, the Pension Schemes Act 1993 provides that certain unpaid pension scheme contributions can be claimed from the National Insurance Fund, through the redundancy payments offices, if the employer sponsoring a pension scheme becomes insolvent. If a claim is successful funds are paid to the trustees of the pension scheme being wound up.