On Monday 10 February, NRC Handelsblad published an article (only in Dutch) regarding the conclusion of the Pensions Ombudsman’s mediation procedure between a pensioner and Pensioenfonds PDN. NRC Handelsblad had already published an article describing this mediation procedure in January 2023. Like then, the article presented a rather biased picture. You can find more information on the background to the mediation procedure via this link.
We very much regret that the Pensions Ombudsman’s mediation did not lead to a satisfactory outcome, despite the two mediation talks that were held between the pensioner and Pensioenfonds PDN during this process.
New pension scheme
The unions and DSM conducted negotiations in 2006 regarding a new pension scheme and its financing. DSM asked Pensioenfonds PDN to implement this new scheme based on the agreements made during the negotiations. The Board then carefully assessed whether the interests of the parties affected by these agreements were balanced and checked that the agreements were legally sound. Internal and external regulators also assessed whether the Board had acted diligently and correctly, for example when adopting the financial statements.
Mediation process
During the mediation process, the Pensions Ombudsman asked many legal and technical questions about the agreements that were made in 2006, especially regarding the financing of the new pension scheme.
The fund therefore asked renowned lawyer Professor E Lutjens to take a further objective look at whether the fund had duly complied with the legislation and regulations in force in 2006 and in later years. Mr Lutjens also confirmed that this was the case.
This means that the Pensioenfonds PDN Board sees no reason to ask dsm-firmenich to reconsider these agreements.
Financing agreements
The Board also notes that the financing agreements with the employer had limited impact on the fund’s financial situation. Even without these agreements, it would not have been possible to index pensions in 2008, nor in later years. This is mainly due to the impact of the 2008 financial crisis and the subsequent continued low interest rates.
To conclude
The Pensioenfonds PDN Board understands that particularly pensioners will be disappointed by this, as they have seen the purchasing power of their pensions fall for many years. Fortunately, we were able to apply full indexation on pensions over 2022 and 2023 and partial indexation in 2025 (over 2024).