AstraZeneca faces renewed strikes

AstraZeneca faces renewed strikes at its Macclesfield plant in a dispute over pension changes.

GMB union members plan to strike tomorrow and on Tuesday. The union, which said the strikes had been resumed because talks with the company had failed, is protesting because the pharmaceuticals giant is asking members of its defined-benefit pension scheme to switch to a defined-contribution plan, or face having their pensionable salaries frozen. The union said talks failed when the company said it was not in a position to make any proposal to settle the dispute.

An AstraZeneca spokeswoman said: "We remain confident that an agreement can be reached with the GMB union and we anticipate meeting with them again over the coming days."