Nortel pensioners worried about U.K. claim

A group of Canadian Nortel pensioners is worried that a claim filed by British pension regulators against the company could have a negative impact on Canadian workers' pensions.

The Globe and Mail is reporting that the U.K. Pensions Regulator filed a $3.3-billion claim against Nortel in an Ontario court.

Don Sproule, chair of the Nortel Retirees Protection Committee, said he's concerned that the British pension administrator is making an attempt to "deplete the Canadian estate" at the expense of Nortel's Canadian pensioners.

Both Britain and the U.S. guarantee company pensions by law, but Canadians don't have the same pension protection.

The Ontario government recently told Nortel employees who worked in the province that the first $1,000 of their monthly pension payments will be guaranteed under an emergency pension insurance fund, but Sproule said Canadian pensioners are still facing a funding shortfall.

Lawyers for the court-appointed monitor in the Nortel case will fight the validity of the claim in court, a Nortel spokeswoman said in a statement.

In the meantime, Sproule said his group will keep pushing the federal government to amend bankruptcy rules and give pensioners "preferred" creditor status, which would give Canadian employees and pensioners higher priority than many other creditors.

The telecom equipment maker filed for bankruptcy protection last January and began selling off its units one by one.

More than 40,000 workers are members of the Nortel U.K. pension plan. U.K. Pensions Regulator officials couldn't be reached for comment.