Britvic is on course to save £300,000 after it salary sacrificed its pension plan and offered it within its flexible benefits scheme.
Under the Smart Pensions scheme, staff at the soft drinks firm sacrifice a portion of their salary equal to their pension contribution. In return, the company makes a contribution into their pension scheme, and both the employer and the employee make savings, as neither pays National Insurance on the contributions.
The new arrangement is proving popular, with over 99% of Britvic's 3,000 employees taking up the scheme. Bob Lee, head of HR enablement at Britvic, which manufactures Pepsi and Tango, added that other employers should plan carefully when implementing a similar scheme. He said: "It is important to ensure that the changes meet Inland Revenue [rules]."
The firm also takes advantage of salary sacrifice for childcare vouchers but, in this instance, gives the employer National Insurance saving back to staff.
Other benefits in its flex scheme include: private health, dental insurance, health screening, trading leave days, childcare vouchers and a home computing scheme.