Proposed Changes to UK Staff Pension Arrangements

RNS Number : 3592Z

Wolseley PLC

06 March 2013

 



NEWS RELEASE

6 March 2013

Wolseley plc - Consultation on proposed changes to UK staff pension arrangements

Wolseley has started a three-month period of consultation regarding proposed changes to staff pension arrangements in the UK, in light of its desire to provide sustainable and competitive pension arrangements for all of its employees.   

The Company is proposing to close the current UK Defined Benefit (DB) Pension Schemes for future accrual on 31 December 2013.  The DB pension benefits that employees have already built up will be protected and there will be no changes to the arrangements for retired and deferred members.  

The proposals will provide all UK employees with access to a highly competitive pension scheme effective from 1 January 2014 which complies with legislation on auto enrolment which comes into force later this year.

The Company remains committed to meeting its DB pension liabilities and has invested £313 million into the scheme over the past three years including £125 million in January 2013.  Wolseley expects no significant change to the overall cost of pensions as a result of this proposal.

Ian Meakins, Chief Executive, Wolseley, commented:

"We want to provide equitable and sustainable pension benefits for all UK employees.  Our proposal will provide all staff with competitive pension benefits whilst reducing the impact of financial risk and volatility of the defined benefit scheme on our business in the long-term."

For further information please contact

Wolseley plc

John Martin, Chief Financial Officer	Tel:       [phone]
Mark Fearon, Director of Corporate Communications and IR	Mobile: +44  (0) 7711 875070
Brunswick (Media Enquiries) Mike Harrison, Sophie Brand	Tel:       [phone]

Notes to editors

Wolseley plc is the world's largest specialist trade distributor of plumbing and heating products to professional contractors and a leading supplier of building materials in North America, the UK and Continental Europe. Ongoing Group revenue for the year ended 31 July 2012 was £12.7 billion and trading profit was £658 million. Wolseley has around 41,000 employees, is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE: WOS) and is in the FTSE 100 index of listed companies.   For more information, please visit www.wolseley.com or follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/wolseleyplc.

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