News – Page 53
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ArticleBHS pension scheme and liabilities under scrutiny from regulator and parliamentary committee
The Work and Pensions Committee is to investigate the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) and the potential impact of the BHS pension liabilities upon this.British Home Stores (BHS) filed for administration on 25 April.The retailer entered a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) in March 2016, and has since been under assessment for ...
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Article60% do not measure success of pensions communication campaigns
Less than two-thirds (60%) of pension decision-maker respondents do not measure the success of pensions communication campaigns, according to research by Capita Employee Benefits.Its Pension scheme insight report 2016, which surveyed 110 pension decision-makers, also found that more than half (56%) of respondents do not believe that pension scheme members ...
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ArticleSwindon Town Football Club fined for auto-enrolment non-compliance
The Pensions Regulator has fined Swindon Town Football Company (STFC) for not fulfilling its pensions auto-enrolment duties.The football club’s fines totalled £22,900 for failing to place eligible employees into a pension scheme and for non-compliance with other workplace pension responsibilities.STFC received a compliance notice in August 2014 directing it to ...
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ArticleTata Steel employees accept temporary 3% pay cut
UK employees at Tata Steel’s Long Products Europe business have agreed to a temporary reduction in pay to facilitate the sale of the business to Greybull Capital.Members of trade unions Community, GMB and Unite accepted the changes to pay and conditions following a consultative ballot.The 12-month agreement includes a 3% ...
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Article40% rank health insurance in their top three employee benefits
Four in ten (40%) respondents rank health insurance among their top three most-valued employee benefits, compared to 37% in 2015, according to research by Willis PMI Group, part of Willis Towers Watson.Its survey of 1,197 UK employees also found that 32% place health screenings among their top three benefits, which ...
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ArticleABI consults on simplifying pensions language
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) is launching a consultation into the language used around pensions and retirement savings.Its consultation will inform the work of the Pensions Language Steering Group, which involves regulators, industry, consumer groups and the government. The group is working to develop a new guide that simplifies ...
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ArticleLouise's lowdown: Will the Lifetime Isa encourage or distract from pension saving?
On 16 March Chancellor George Osborne delivered his Budget 2016 speech to Parliament. A storm of speculation around pensions tax relief had raged for months before beginning to subside in early March, when word spread that this Budget would not, as many had expected, herald in further radical reform to ...
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Article23% have seen retirement plans impacted by low interest rates
Just under a quarter (23%) of respondents expect to have to work past the age of 65 due to the impact of low interest rates on their retirement savings, according to research by Canada Life Group Insurance.Its survey of 855 full and part-time employees found that among this group, 16% ...
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ArticleCo-operative Group chief executive requests 60% pay cut
The Co-operative Group’s chief executive has requested a 60% cut to his total remuneration package.Richard Pennycook (pictured) will see his base salary reduce from £1.25m to £750,000 from July 2016.From 2017, the maximum annual incentive plan award will fall from 100% of base salary to 40% of base salary, and ...
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Article16% refer staff to Pension Wise
Less than one-fifth (16%) of employer respondents are referring their employees to the Pension Wise service, compared to 20% in October 2015, according to research by Close Brothers Asset Management.The latest Close Brothers business barometer, which surveyed 917 employers, also found that more than a third (36%) of respondents offer ...
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ArticleCo-operative Food to increase new starter pay by 1.8%
The Co-operative Group is increasing pay for new starters in its food stores by 1.8%.The increase follows a two-year pay deal agreed in 2015 that will see 40,000 employees working in frontline positions in its food business receive a pay rise of 8.5% by October 2016.The increases take pay levels ...
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Article50% of DB pension scheme members take up employer-paid financial advice
Half (50%) of defined benefit (DB) pension scheme members aged 55 and over have opted to speak to a financial adviser if offered this service for free by their employer, according to research by Willis Towers Watson.The research is based on data provided by financial advisory firms and examines 15,700 ...
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ArticleOmbudsman upholds pensions tax complaint against police
The Pensions Ombudsman has upheld a police officer, Mr Cherry's complaint that his employer had a duty of care to inform him of the tax implications of re-employment on his retirement benefits.He was employed as a police officer with the Police and Crime Commissioner of South Wales from February 1982, ...
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ArticleA fifth do not expect to retire until after age 70
Just over a fifth of respondents do not expect to be able to retire until they are in their seventies, according to research by Willis Towers Watson.Its Global benefits attitudes survey, which interviewed UK-based 1,895 workers, also found that employees who expect to work for longer are less healthy, more ...
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ArticleKingfisher agrees £230 million pension buy-in
Retail group Kingfisher has completed a £230 million medically underwritten buy-in transaction for its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme.The transaction, carried out by Legal and General, covered 149 specific scheme members from the £3 billion scheme.Aon and Hymans Robertson also advised on the transaction.Chris Gilchrist, chair of the trustee for ...
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Article71% of millennials do not understand their pension investments
More than two-thirds (71%) of millennial respondents do not understand or are unsure about their pension investments, according to research by Barnett Waddingham.Its Generation why? survey 2016, which surveyed 506 employees, also found that 72% of generation X respondents (aged 30-49) do not feel certain about their understanding of pensions ...
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Article19% plan to increase benefits spend in 2016
Around a fifth (19%) of employer respondents plan to increase spend on employee benefits over the next 12 months, according to research by Aviva.Its Working lives report, which surveyed more than 1,000 employers and 4,000 employees in the private sector during the first quarter of 2013 and the first quarter ...
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ArticlePorsche awards €8,911 bonus to staff
Porsche AG is awarding employees a €8,911 (£6,952) bonus in recognition of their role in helping the organisation achieve positive results for 2015.The bonus will be paid to around 15,600 members of staff who are employed under the firm’s collective pay agreement.The 2015 bonus will be adapted according to employees’ ...
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ArticleHow the Budget 2016 will impact employee benefits
On 16 March, Chancellor George Osborne delivered his Budget 2016 speech. Below is a round-up of the key announcements with a bearing on employee benefits:The government plans to limit the range of benefits that can be offered under a salary sacrifice arrangement. This will not apply to pensions, childcare and ...
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ArticleGovernment commits to pensions dashboard
Budget 2016: The government has committed to ensuring that the pensions industry designs, funds and launches a pensions dashboard by 2019.The commitment, which was announced during the 2016 Budget, will enable individuals to view details of all of their retirement savings in one place.Darren Philp, director of policy and market ...