Analysis – Page 6
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AnalysisWhat do recent court rulings mean for workplace pension schemes?
Need to know:Employers need to review their pension scheme membership and rewrite scheme rules to ensure any same-sex spousal pension benefits owed have been delivered.The ruling in the O'Brien v Ministry of Justice case could have a wide financial impact on pension benefits for part-time employees.Divorce and pension rulings also ...
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AnalysisWhat employers need to know about pension scams
An increase in pension scams led to the government announcing a ban on all cold calling in pensions in August 2017. There are several key facts that can help employers protect their employees from scammers:The Pensions Regulator (TPR) offers resources to alert employees including a video and booklet, and also ...
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AnalysisHow is pensions education changing?
Need to know:Pensions education should explore how all of an employee’s savings options can be optimised to allow for the greatest retirement income over the longest timeframe.The shift from defined benefit (DB) to defined contribution (DC) schemes, as well as the introduction of the pension freedoms in 2015, has changed ...
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AnalysisHow to help employees strike the right savings balance
Need to know:Employers recognise that a one-size-fits-all approach to financial education is not as effective as individualisation.Employees face different financial pressures at different life stages, but these change through an individual’s working life.There are a variety of workplace savings schemes that employers can provide to help employees save in the ...
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AnalysisTop tips to make retirement saving relatable for employees
Need to know:Initiatives that inspire employees to think about what their future might look like can help engage them with the retirement saving they will require to support this.Using terms that relate to present-day situations can make retirement saving feel more relevant to employees.Personalised tools and communications can provide context ...
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AnalysisHow can benefits support age diversity in the workplace?
Need to knowAs the UK population ages, supporting older employees in the workplace will become a more prominent issue.A benefits strategy does not necessarily need to be age-specific, but can focus on an employee’s life stage to have a bigger impact.Benefits such as flexible working, health and wellbeing initiatives, and ...
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AnalysisHow to effectively manage pensions change in an organisation
Need to know:Reasons for pension change projects can vary, for example, an organisation may wish to reduce the costs of its current scheme, or lower the risks involved.Setting corporate objectives around what the organisation wants to achieve with its pension scheme is the first step when deciding on the most ...
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AnalysisWhat impact will the Lifetime Isa have on UK workplace pensions?
The launch of the Lifetime individual saving account (Lisa) presents an attractive new way for people to boost their savings for a deposit for a first home or their pension pot on retirement, but it should not be seen as an alternative to paying into a workplace pension.From April 2017, ...
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AnalysisHow will the gig economy affect employee benefits?
Need to know:Gig workers are revolutionising the service economy. However, employers must tread carefully when offering them benefits or risk legal action and costly reclassification exercises.Arm’s-length benefits arrangements are evolving, where employers act as facilitators, rather than directly contributing financially.The government is currently investigating how the law treats gig workers, ...
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AnalysisInfographic: What information do pension scheme trustees communicate annually?
An infographic showing the proportion of the trustees of defined contribution (DC) pension schemes communicating each item annually or more often (Source: Defined contribution trust-based pension schemes research, OMB Research for The Pensions Regulator, July 2016).Read more in: What should employers expect from today's pension trustee board?
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AnalysisHow can employers support 'sandwich generation' employees with their finances?
Need to know:Generation-specific financial education can help inform employees around relevant life events.Giving employees the opportunity to contribute more of their salary into a workplace pension will have a positive impact on those that have missed out on a defined benefit pension and have been enrolled into a defined contribution ...
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AnalysisHow can pension schemes’ asset allocation accommodate drawdown in retirement?
Need to knowThe easiest way to offer in-scheme drawdown is to use a third party such as a provider or master trust.Diversified multi-asset funds are recommended for employees on a glidepath to drawdown. These are designed for low volatility, but with real prospects of growth to keep pace with future ...
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AnalysisHow to create a year-round pensions engagement strategy
Need to know:A year-round pensions engagement strategy can help to maintain and increase interest levels over the longer term.Certain personal and national events can serve as opportunities to shine a spotlight on pensions and build momentum.Including pensions in a wider financial wellbeing strategy can enable staff to better visualise the ...
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Analysis
Video: Tim Middleton - Mitigate the risk of pension scams
Tim Middleton, technical consultant at the Pensions Management Institute, talks about:What is the latest court ruling around pension scams?What do employers need to be aware of around pension scams?What resources are available to help employers educate employees about pension scams?What obligation do employers have to educate employees about the risk ...
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AnalysisWhat role does robo-advice play in a financial education strategy?
Need to know:The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) estimates that there are 16 million people in the ‘advice gap’: those that need financial advice but cannot afford it.While the retail distribution review (RDR) made the advice charging process more transparent, it also made it more expensive by raising standards.Robo-advice is seen ...
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Analysis
Video: Chris Curry - Empowering staff to save for retirement
Chris Curry, director at the Pensions Policy Institute, talks about:What implications will the new state pension have on the support employers offer to staff?How can employers encourage greater employee engagement with saving for retirement?What can be done to overcome apathy around pension saving?What can employers do to help tackle inequality ...
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AnalysisInfographic: Should Lisas form part of employees' remuneration package in the future?
An infographic looking at whether Lisas should form part of an organisation's employee remuneration package in the future (Source: Sackers, published in May 2016).Read more in What role do individual savings accounts play in a workplace savings strategy?
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AnalysisWhat role do individual savings accounts play in a workplace savings strategy?
Need to knowReductions in pensions savings limits could make workplace individual savings accounts (Isas) an attractive savings vehicle for those contributions previously made to a workplace pension.Targeted at younger members of the workforce, the launch of the lifetime Isa (Lisa) next April could prove to be a catalyst for engaging ...
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AnalysisHow communication can drive benefits take-up
Driving take-up of any employee benefits package is a perennial challenge for employers; after all, it is no good having a comprehensive scheme if people do not know about it, or understand the value they could potentially get.A good starting point for employers is to make sure they are offering ...
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AnalysisHow to select the right default fund approach for an organisation
Need to know:Deciding on a default fund strategy depends on the quality of the investment strategy, the suitability for employees, and ongoing governance.Active funds are targeted at growth and are diversified across a range of asset classes, while passive funds track a market and are considered a cheaper option.Employees’ expected ...