UNION bosses have warned that further strikes at BMW plants across the country are ‘almost certain’ if talks over the car giant’s pension scheme fail.

Representatives from the Unite union met yesterday to discuss the next steps in their dispute with BMW over plans to close the final salary scheme.

Fred Hanna, Unite’s national officer for BMW, said: “Shop stewards from all of BMW’s UK plants are clear that further strike action is almost certain unless the company puts forward a new offer that better addresses members concerns.”

Last week BMW bosses gave union members a choice between taking a £25,000 tax free payment, split over three years, which would be placed into a defined contribution scheme, or accepting a payment of £22,000, which would be subject to tax and national insurance deductions.

Union members based at BMW sites in Swindon, Cowley, Goodwood, Chichester and Hams Hall in the West Midlands voted earlier this week to reject the offer – with 56.6 per cent voting against the deal and 43.4 per cent voting to accept it.

It means that planned 24-hour strikes, which were suspended in May while workers considered the offer, may now go ahead.

The dispute has already seen walkouts hit production lines at all four factories.

Mr Hanna added: “We would urge BMW bosses to engage constructively and work with Unite to hammer out a deal which is acceptable to our members and averts the disruption of further strike action.”

Speaking ahead of yesterday’s talks Unite’s Swindon representative, John McGookin, said: “A lot of people are still quite angry with the situation and still feel as though they have been short-changed.”

The union said that it expects to meet BMW bosses in the coming days for further talks over the pension plans.

A BMW spokesman said: “We are disappointed that Unite members have voted to reject the company’s best offer designed to support employees during the proposed move to its new UK pension arrangements.

“We are now considering the implications of the ballot result and we will be meeting with the union in due course to discuss next steps.

“We believe the offer, which resulted from lengthy negotiations with the union since September last year, was fair.

"It was designed to improve competitiveness, which is in the long-term interests of all our employees in the future.”