According to a new report by Aegon, more than half (54%) of employees believe it is their employer’s responsibility to help them plan for retirement. The report also found a large number of employees were not allowed to check their workplace pension during working hours, with a huge 75% of those surveyed not being encouraged to do so.
Scheduled time
Due to this lack of support when it comes to workplace pensions, 73% of those employees surveyed said they would very much welcome employers implementing a scheduled time per month for them to check their workplace pension. The majority thought that around 15 minutes per month would be a suitable amount of time. The most popular way to spend this time was to check the fund value of the pension, closely followed by ensuring both employer and employee contributions had been paid correctly.
Aegon’s head of pensions, Kate Smith, also asserts the importance of the employer’s role when it comes to workplace pensions. She states, “Employers have invested significant time and effort into establishing their workplace schemes and are key to helping employees develop good pension saving habits. By setting aside regular time to check their pension, staff are more likely to see the value of these important benefits provided by their employer and will start to think about saving and financial preparations for retirement.
30% increase in employee engagement levels
“Our own experience has shown a 30% increase in employee engagement levels when the employer has endorsed the pension and encouraged staff to take action. This demonstrates how a small change from an employer can make a big difference to engagement levels in the workplace.”
Evidently – as this research demonstrates – clearly engaging with your employees on their workplace pension is of paramount importance. It is not merely enough to set up your Auto Enrolment scheme. As an employer, it is advised that you take measures to ensure your workers are encouraged to take an active interest in their workplace pension. Utilising an Independent Financial Advisor to implement your Auto Enrolment scheme takes care of much of the above. At IEP Financial we employ regular, one-to-one employee meetings as standard practice in our Auto Enrolment service, and operate a yearly review system of all our Auto Enrolment schemes.
If you would like to speak to one of our dedicated team of Auto Enrolment experts about your company pension scheme, then please contact our Hove office
on 01273 208813 or email [email protected]
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IEP Financial Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
