All Pensions articles – Page 29
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AnalysisWhat does the Covid-19 outbreak mean for employees' pensions savings?
Need to know:Diversified default funds have protected most defined contribution (DC) pension scheme members and, for younger employees, market falls can be an opportunity to buy into investments at a lower price.The Covid-19 (Coronavirus) job retention scheme has limitations and members who opt out can destabilise other employee benefit arrangements.As ...
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OpinionCarolyn Jones: Careful consideration is needed before making pensions decisions
The uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic means it is a crucial time for employers to support the financial wellbeing of staff. When it comes to concerns about pensions, employers should encourage staff not to panic and make rushed decisions without understanding all of the facts.For employees with defined ...
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OpinionChristopher Nuttall: Should the burden of pensions move to the employee?
Employers are familiar with the automatic-enrolment duties that oblige them to put certain staff into a pension scheme and contribute towards it. These duties began in 2012. But what comes next?The majority of schemes used in the private sector are defined contribution (DC) schemes in which the contributions, together with ...
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OpinionSam Smethers: Is pay transparency radical?
Sometimes the simple and obvious thing can still be perceived as radical. When it comes to pay transparency, the idea that we might find out what our colleagues are earning is, at one level, radical because pay secrecy is the norm in most workplaces and talking about pay is taboo. ...
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ArticleTPR allow trustees to freeze pension transfers for three months
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has made changes to regulations to support employers and trustees as they work to meet the challenges of the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic.Trustees of defined benefit (DB) schemes will be able to suspend cash equivalent transfer value activity for up to three months.According to the regulator, if ...
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ArticleITV ordered to offer financial support to Box Clever pension scheme by TPR
Following an eight year long legal challenge against The Pensions Regulator (TPR), television broadcasting organisation ITV has been given a six month deadline to provide financial support for the Box Clever pension scheme.Box Clever was a joint venture formed in 2000 between ITV and Carmelite; employees were transferred to the ...
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ArticleSouthbank Capital Limited director fined £12,800 by Pensions Regulator
Director and shareholder of Southbank Capital Limited, Michael Woolley, has been handed a £10,000 fine, and ordered to pay a further £2,800 in costs, for failing to hand over information and documents requested by The Pensions Regulator (TPR).TPR requested that Woolley provide information about investments relating to money and assets ...
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ArticleHow will the Spring Budget 2020 affect pay and benefits?
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak delivered the Spring Budget speech to the House of Commons on Wednesday 11 March 2020. Below is a summary of the key announcements that could impact pay and benefits strategies:National insurance contribution threshold to rise to £9,500 from April 2020National living wage projected to ...
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Case StudiesCo-op transfers employees to a more flexible defined contribution scheme
In October 2015, food and retail business Co-op closed its defined benefit (DB) pensions arrangement and transferred employees out to a defined contribution (DC) group personal pension (GPP) scheme.During the change, the existing £8 billion DB scheme stayed as was, with all existing accruals retained. In terms of future pension ...
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AnalysisBack to basics on defined benefit to defined contribution pension transfers
Need to know: Defined benefit (DB) to defined contribution (DC) transfers are becoming increasingly popular, and employers should understand the basics to help staff make the right choices.Employees looking for greater flexibility must also understand and be comfortable with the higher level of risk associated with DC schemes.Many individuals would ...
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ArticleTapered annual allowance threshold for pension tax relief to increase by £90,000
Budget 2020: Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced today (11 March 2020) that that the tapered annual allowance threshold for pensions tax relief will be increased by £90,000.This means that from 2020/2021, the threshold income will be £200,000; those employees that earn below this level will not be affected by the tapered ...
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OpinionTony Pugh: Delegate to accumulate – how to win back time by changing pension schemes
If you asked most employers what their biggest business priorities are for this year, I am confident that ‘spending more time on the pension scheme’ would not feature very highly.In fact, Aon’s UK DC pension survey 2020, published in February 2020, showed that 35% of employers with their own trust-based ...
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ArticleTPR launches consultation on DB pension scheme funding
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has published a consultation on a revised code of practice for defined benefit (DB) scheme funding.The results of the consultation will enable TPR to set a benchmark for good standards of compliance, expected to come into force at the end of 2021. These will be implemented ...
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OpinionPaul McGlone: Government priority should be to better look after pension savers
Consensus is often difficult to come by, but in a recent Society of Pension Professionals (SPP) poll on what the government's pension priorities should be in 2020, agreement was not hard to find. Based on what our members said, the priority is ultimately to better look after pension savers.We asked ...
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ArticleThe Pensions Regulator urged to address financial risks associated with climate change
In the coming months, the government has asked that The Pensions Regulator (TPR) set out a strategy to deal with the financial risks associated with climate change. In an open letter to Charles Counsell, chief executive at TPR, Pete Searle, director of private pensions and arm’s length bodies partnership at ...
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AnalysisHow to quantify the value of additional pension contributions
Need to know:Part of engaging staff with pension contributions is aligning these with other savings vehicles, and showcasing the beneficial deal that is on offer.Breaking down monthly costs into pounds and pence can help contributions seem more manageable, as can bringing far-off goals forward with shorter-term achievements.Asking employees to give ...
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Case StudiesFord uses data to analyse the value of pension contributions across the globe
Image credit: r.classenInternational automotive manufacturer Ford spends approximately $1 billion (£772,195,000) per year on pensions for its employees, spanning 36 countries and more than 120 different schemes. In the UK alone, 10,000 members of staff are enrolled in either defined contribution (DC) or defined benefit (DB) arrangements.Quantifying the value of ...
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OpinionAlice Honeywill: The value of additional contributions in closing the gender pension gap
While we await government reforms on pension policy and wider industry change to tackle the gender pension gap, I find myself asking one question: what action can be taken right now?More specifically, what steps can employers be taking to make small, yet potentially effective, changes?The most widely discussed initiative is ...
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ArticleOne in 10 believe their pension scheme investments align with ESG best practice
Less than one in 10 (9%) employers believe that their pension scheme investments align with environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors, according to research by Howden Employee Benefits and Wellbeing.Rules introduced in October 2019 mean that pension scheme trustees are to required to outline their policies on financially material investment ...
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OpinionKate Gardner: What does the landmark veganism ruling mean for employers?
In a major step forward in employment law, a tribunal has ruled that ethical veganism is a philosophical belief, meaning that an employee could rely upon veganism as one of the nine protected characteristics covered by the Equality Act 2010.While this is great news for employees, how will it affect ...