A report from Jardine Lloyd Thompson Benefit Solutions, shows that 31% of employees have little or no savings and 56% have less than four months' salary saved.
The problem is worst in Northern Ireland where 47% of staff have less than one month's salary saved but in London, 35% of employees have saved between four months' and a year's salary and 21% have more than a year's salary in savings.
Alex Tullet, head of benefit communications at Jardine Lloyd Thompson, believes that employers must provide financial education.
Tullet said: "Whilst as an industry we continue to emphasise the importance of pensions, before the uptake of pensions can improve, people need to be financially educated to understand their immediate situation before worrying about something that is 30-40 years away."