More than half a million (503,178) UK employers have completed their pensions auto-enrolment duties as of 31 March 2017, according to research by The Pensions Regulator (TPR).
Its Declaration of compliance report, which is based on information submitted by employers when they complete their declaration of compliance documentation, also found that more than 7.6 million employees are now saving for their retirement after being enrolled into a workplace pension since 2012.
Between January and March 2017, 136,000 small and micro employers complied with their auto-enrolment duties, and a further 600,000 are due to begin enrolling staff into a workplace pension this year.
Approximately 1.3-1.4 million UK employers have auto-enrolment duties to meet, of which 503,178 have now done so.
Richard Harrington, pensions minister, said: “These impressive new figures show that by setting up a workplace pension, employers are getting their staff on the road to a financially secure retirement. But, there are nearly a million employers out there who still need to enrol their staff and I would encourage them to take up the support on offer from The Pensions Regulator. Pensions can seem daunting, but there is a wealth of information available to help you get set up.”
Charles Counsell, director of automatic enrolment at TPR, added: “We expected that the number of employers becoming compliant would increase dramatically this year and I’m delighted that we’ve reached the 500,000 mark. Hundreds of thousands more employers are due to follow suit over the coming months and it is vital that they act early and do not leave themselves open to being fined.
"Some employers may see becoming compliant as a challenge but we have written to each of them and are here to help them to meet their responsibilities. I would urge every employer to check today that they know what they need to do and when they need to do it. Now is the time to seek help if [they] need it.”
