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The British Home Stores pension scheme: privatised looting?

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  • Ian Clark

Abstract

On entering administration, British Home Stores owed its pension scheme £571 million—a significant employment relations issue of historical wage theft by investor–owner managers. The article locates ‘lawful’ looting of business assets in a framework that builds on Ackerlof and Romer's theory of bankruptcy for profit and connects this to an empirical narrative on business re‐structuring at British Home Stores towards administration.

Suggested Citation

  • Ian Clark, 2019. "The British Home Stores pension scheme: privatised looting?," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(4), pages 331-347, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:indrel:v:50:y:2019:i:4:p:331-347
    DOI: 10.1111/irj.12261
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Edmund Heery & Deborah Hann & David Nash, 2018. "Trade unions and the real Living Wage: survey evidence from the UK," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(4), pages 319-335, July.
    2. George A. Akerlof & Paul M. Romer, 1993. "Looting: The Economic Underworld of Bankruptcy for Profit," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 24(2), pages 1-74.
    3. Ian Clark, 2016. "Financialisation, ownership and employee interests under private equity at the AA, part two," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(3), pages 238-252, May.
    4. Engelbert Stockhammer, 2004. "Financialisation and the slowdown of accumulation," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 28(5), pages 719-741, September.
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    6. Natalia A. Vershinina & Peter Rodgers & Monder Ram & Nick Theodorakopoulos & Yulia Rodionova, 2018. "False self†employment: the case of Ukrainian migrants in London's construction sector," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(1), pages 2-18, January.
    7. Jill Rubery & Damian Grimshaw & Arjan Keizer & Mathew Johnson, 2018. "Challenges and Contradictions in the ‘Normalising’ of Precarious Work," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 32(3), pages 509-527, June.
    8. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    9. Prem Sikka, 2008. "Corporate governance: what about the workers?," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 21(7), pages 955-977, September.
    10. repec:eme:aaaj00:09513570810907438 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. David Bailey & Ian Clark & Alex De Ruyter, 2010. "Private equity and the flight of the phoenix four-- the collapse of MG Rover in the UK," Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 3(3), pages 367-382.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ian Clark & Chris Lawton & Clifford Stevenson & Tom Vickers & David Dahill, 2022. "A ‘place-based’ approach to work and employment: The end of reciprocity for ordinary working families and ‘giggers’ in a place," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 43(2), pages 634-657, May.
    2. Chris Rees & Michael Gold, 2020. "Re‐connecting capitalism: prospects for the regulatory reform of the employee interest in UK takeovers," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(6), pages 502-516, November.

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