All Pensions articles – Page 145
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Article
Regulator publishes three-year strategic pensions approach
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has set out its strategic approach to regulating defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) pension schemes, and maximising employer compliance with auto-enrolment duties in its latest corporate plan.The strategic themes in the Corporate plan 2013 – 2016 include:Reducing risks to DB pension scheme members.Improving outcomes ...
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Article
Ban on consultancy charges for auto-enrolment
The government has banned consultancy charges for auto-enrolment pension schemes.The move aims to protect employees from high and inappropriate pension charges.It follows a six-month-long review of consultancy charges conducted by the government, which concluded that existing measures to prevent advisers deducting high charges from members’ pension pots are inadequate.The review ...
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Article
Zurich launches auto-enrolment default fund
Zurich’s corporate savings business has launched an auto-enrolment default investment fund in partnership with asset management organisation Schroders.The Zurich Dynamic Lifestyle Portfolio will be available to new and existing members of Zurich’s workplace pension schemes.The fund consists of three underlying funds. Schroders will manage the mixed investments and the defined ...
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Article
Scottish Life to change underlying investment of matrix fund
Scottish Life is to change the underlying investment held within its Global Blend Core Plus Pension Fund. The matrix fund, a group of externally managed equity funds categorised by sector and by risk relative to a benchmark, will see its underlying investment switched to the Rathbone Global Alpha Fund from ...
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Article
Legal & General to launch trustee-style governance for contract-based pensions
Legal and General is to extend its independent trustee-style governance approach to contract-based workplace pensions for employers.The new governance structure, Independent Governance Oversight, is designed to work both with pension schemes’ own governance committees, and to take sole responsibility where no other governance exists.Independent Governance Oversight will mirror the governance ...
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Article
Pension schemes not meeting principles of DC governance
More than three-quarters (76%) of pension schemes surveyed are aware of The Pensions Regulator’s Six principles of good workplace DC, according to research by The Pensions Regulator (TPR).Its Occupational pension scheme governance 2013 research, which surveyed 454 trust-based defined benefit (DB), defined contribution (DC) and hybrid pension schemes, aimed to ...
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Article
European pension funds shift out of equities
European pension funds have continued to cut equity allocations, according to research by Mercer.Its European asset allocation survey, which looked at more than 1,200 European pension funds with combined assets of more than €750 billion, found that plans in the UK shifted out of equities over the last 12 months, ...
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Article
Peverel Group promotes total reward
EXCLUSIVE: Peverel Group has launched a series of roadshows and workshops to promote its total reward platform, its flexible benefits scheme and new group personal pension (GPP) plan as it prepares for auto-enrolment.The property management group opened its flexible benefits enrolment window in March 2013, and employees’ benefit choices took ...
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Article
McDonald’s sees low pension opt-outs
EXCLUSIVE: McDonald’s Restaurants has seen 2.4% of its hourly-paid employees and 2.7% of its salaried employees that were auto-enrolled on 1 January 2013 opt out of pensions.The fast food retailer has 37,000 UK employees who work directly for the organisation (rather than its franchises). Of this group, 35,000 are hourly-paid ...
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ArticleHow technology is used to deliver benefits
One-third (34%) of respondents do not use technology to deliver benefits, according to exclusive research by Employee Benefits.The Benefits Research 2013, which surveyed 561 HR and benefits professionals, found that where respondents do use technology for this purpose, 32% deliver benefits via an HR system, 32% use a voluntary benefits ...
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Article
Kodak pension plan acquires imaging business
Eastman Kodak Company has concluded a settlement agreement with its UK Kodak Pension Plan (KPP).Under the agreement, which will be filed with the US Bankruptcy Court, the company’s personalised imaging and document imaging businesses will be spun off under new ownership to KPP for a cash and non-cash consideration of ...
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Article
Daily Mail plans for pensions auto-enrolment
The Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) will use provider Staffcare’s middleware product to manage its auto-enrolment duties.DMGT, which employs 11,500 employees globally and owns publications such as The Daily Mail, The Metro and The Mail on Sunday, has multiple staging dates, the first of which is 1 August 2013. ...
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Article
Employers use technology platforms to engage staff with benefits
In April, KFC launched an online total reward platform, which includes total reward statements and online shopping discounts for all its 10,000 staff, as well as a flexible benefits scheme for its 1,000 salaried employees.It previously used a paper-based system, but was keen to offer a single platform to bring ...
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Article
Government consults on pensions auto-enrolment legislation
Issues include streamlining the process for assessing which staff are eligible for pensions auto-enrolment. The government plans to allow employers to assess eligibility using information already collected by payroll systems.The government has also suggested lifting the requirement for staff to be auto-enrolled if they voluntarily left their workplace pension in ...
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Case Studies
Schlumberger educates expat staff about pensions value
Oilfield services business Schlumberger has introduced a classroom-based training course and pension modelling tools as part of an initiative to help engage its expatriate employees with its defined benefit (DB) pension plan.Sarah Moise, global benefits manager at Schlumberger, says: “Although we hire from universities, retirement is typically not our recruits’ ...
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Case Studies
Wavin Pension Trust gives members support around choices
There are currently 266 members in the trust, which is run alongside two defined benefit (DB) plans.The scheme offers a range of multi-asset lifestyle strategies and 16 self-select investment options. Brian Baker, Wavin’s compensation and benefits manager, says: “The independent professional trustee keeps all the investments under review, amending and ...
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AnalysisTop five considerations for at-retirement strategies
IF YOU READ NOTHING ELSE, READ THIS…Trustees and pension providers must support employees when they are making their at-retirement choices.Online modelling tools can help crystallise employees’ at-retirement income.The open market option for annuities should be factored into at-retirement communications strategies.1. Regulatory requirementsThe Pensions Regulator (TPR) believes that defined contribution (DC) ...
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ArticleMost common salary sacrifice perks
EXCLUSIVE: The most common benefits offered through a salary sacrifice arrangement on a voluntary basis are childcare vouchers (76%), bikes-for-work schemes (62%) and pensions contributions (60%), according to exclusive research by Employee Benefits.The Benefits Research 2013, which surveyed 561 HR and benefits professionals, found that the number of employers that ...
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Analysis
What are target date pension funds?
IF YOU READ NOTHING ELSE, READ THIS…Target date funds are investment funds tailored to a pension scheme member’s date of retirement.Most target date funds are written to a three-year band, such as 2028 to 2030, rather than one specific date.Funds gradually de-risk, reaching their most conservative point at the target ...
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AnalysisPension rights for employees' partners
IF YOU READ NOTHING ELSE, READ THIS…Many pension schemes will have discretion to pay a pensions benefit to an employee’s partner if they are financially dependent or financially interdependent with them.A joint annuity can be applied to civil partnerships, same-sex and opposite-sex marriages, and co-habiting couples.There must be no distinction ...