BAA is to close its final-salary pension scheme to new employees, it said yesterday.

Britain’s biggest airport operator, which was bought by Ferrovial, the Spanish contruction group, last year, said that it was protecting itself and its pensioners from stock market volatility and was trying to bring greater stability.

The move was condemned by Unite, the union, as callous and cynical.

Two weeks ago, The Times revealed that Ferrovial was planning to cut up to 2,000 jobs at BAA.

Unite claimed that the closure of the pension scheme was a cost-cutting ploy.

Brendan Gold, Unite’s national secretary for civil air transport, said: “Hundreds, if not thousands, of people are going to join BAA, especially as security workers, to be told they will have a different deal on pensions to those they will work alongside.”

He said that the present pensions deficit of £29 million was relatively modest. “There is no financial or rational reason for the Spanish-owned BAA to do what they are doing,” he said.

“We are seeking an urgent meeting with the directors to tell them exactly what we think. We will consult our shop stewards across the airport operations to discuss how we campaign against this outrageous and wholly unjustifiable decision.”

A BAA spokesman said: “It’s something we have always been looking at. These particular schemes aren’t so much in fashion anymore. Most FTSE 100 companies have moved away from using them and they suffer from stock market volatility.”

He admitted that the deficit was will leave the terms and conditions of existing workers unchanged. New workers will be invited to join a new money-purchase scheme, the details of which will be released after consultation with the unions.

Closure of the final-salary scheme raises the spectre of disruption for passengers if the unions decide to strike. A Unite spokesman said: “It’s too early to talk about industrial action, but suffice to say BAA has caused major ripples through the workforce.”

Ferrovial borrowed heavily last year to secure BAA in a £10.3 billion deal. BAA unveiled management changes this month, including the appointment of Sir Nigel Rudd, the City grandee, as its new chairman.

Final-salary schemes are increasingly rare in the private sector, although the majority of public sector employers have retained the system. Most large companies have closed the schemes to new members, or shut them all together, in the face of widening deficits.

A recent survey by the TUC found that most FTSE 100 executives still have final-salary schemes, worth more than £3 million on average.

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