Over 700 voluntary sector organisations and social enterprises employing over 98,500 employees, took part in the largest survey of the sector, revealing only 9% believe they have ‘total awareness’ of the new auto-enrolment regulations and what they need to do in preparation.
One in seven employers (14%) still has little or no awareness of its auto-enrolment responsibilities.
Those with fewer employees are most likely to be in need of guidance in the build up to the auto-enrolment reforms, with smaller organisations even more likely to be unaware of their responsibilities.
The research also highlighted the assistance employers would like to see from their pension provider to ease their path into auto-enrolment. Online information, self-help tools and checklists are the most important areas of support employers are looking for, with auto-enrolment workshops and regulatory updates also popular. The Pensions Trust has developed and added a cost calculator to its suite of support tools for employers. This can be used to determine the additional pension costs employers can expect to see once the regulations impact upon them.
The tool has been developed to enable employers to obtain results based on a number of different employer contribution and take up rates and will help employers to understand and manage their costs more effectively.
Stephen Nichols, chief executive of The Pensions Trust said: “With auto-enrolment less than a year away, it is important that all organisations are properly prepared and are fully aware of the measures they must put in place. Our research highlights that a large number of charitable and social sectororganisations are still in the dark when it comes to getting the necessary arrangements in place, in particular those at the smaller end of the scale who have fewer employees. While smaller organisations will have more time to prepare for auto-enrolment, this does not mean they should rest on their laurels and do nothing; it is vital that all organisations, regardless of size, do what they can now to make sure they are properly prepared.”
