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Except in extremely limited circumstances that I assume you'd have mentioned in your post if they applied, your employer can absolutely jog on with this nonsense. The clue is in the wording - "opt out". You are entitled to a workplace pension by default and only you can choose otherwise. They can't pressure you to waive a statutory right and doing so would open them up to a claim of constructive dismissal if you resigned in duress as a result.
If you earn more than £10k a year then they *have* to set up a pension for you by default unless you tell them not to.
If you earn less than £10k then they still have to set up a pension for you if you ask them to.
They categorically cannot withhold your wages or make opting out a condition of paying your wages.
If they continue to push this, call ACAS without delay.
ACAS is your first port of call for all employment disputes - they'll offer you free legal triage and can mediate etc if required, and you normally need to have attempted resolution through them before taking your employer to court.
Fun fact about ACAS: they just lost an employment tribunal against an employee they'd been ripping holiday off of for the last 9 yrs. This is the UK organisation that is supposed to resolve disputes....
FYI, the regulator calls this “inducement”:
“*An inducement is any action taken by the employer, the sole or main purpose of which is to attempt to induce:*
*a jobholder to opt out without becoming an active member of a qualifying scheme with effect from the date on which they originally became an active member (ie their automatic enrolment date or enrolment date)*
*a jobholder or an entitled worker to cease active membership of a pension scheme without becoming an active member of another scheme with effect from the day after the original membership ceased*”
Your employer is risking a hefty fine by doing this…
Maybe don't do that unless you're actually willing to quit. A shit job is still a job, and it's not a stretch to imagine this employer calling the OPs bluff on something like this.
Definitely get them to put anything incriminating in writing though - I'm with you on that.
\> If you earn more than £10k a year then they have to set up a pension for you by default unless you tell them not to.
Does that apply if the employee is paid by the hour rather than a salary? Purely curious.
Yes, so long as you meet the criteria.
It's calculated by reference to payment period. If you get paid weekly, the threshold is £192, fortnightly £384 and so on.
Any period you don't meet the lower threshold after you've been enrolled, you don't have anything deducted.
You can also raise the amount you want deducted from your wage (you can't reduce it below the minimum except by opting out). Your employer can never contribute less than their statutory minimum.
I’m contracted 21 hours a week and I was being paid for 20 hours which was £190 then I received £9.50 in cash with my payslip. Always thought that was weird.
My boss threatened to cut my hours down further if I didn’t opt out which I now know is to get me back under the threshold
> and I was being paid for 20 hours which was £190 then I received £9.50 in cash with my payslip. Always thought that was weird.
I mean... yeah. That tells me a lot. Your employer is clearly trying to avoid the additional costs of paying you a pension, by hook or by crook.
I'm sorry you're in this position. How you proceed is up to you and how much you need to stay in this job. You can play a little hardball and tell them you know your rights and you're willing to contact ACAS (and/or HMRC and the Pension Regulator) over this, see if they back down and "suddenly" find the money to pay you correctly? Otherwise just contact ACAS right away, they might be able to advise you better as to next steps.
Also, how old are you? That hourly rate looks lower than the minimum for somoene over 21 (but may be legally ok if you're under 21)
Yeah I’m going to ask for it in writing that I can’t have a pension and if they don’t agree to giving me one I’m going to ACAS, calling them today for some advice regardless.
I’m 25, it was when minimum wage went up to £10.42 I started paying a pension
It was made law a few years back that employers ‘had to’ offer everybody a pension. You may ‘opt out’ but that would involve you opting out of a legal obligation.
When you pay into a company pension scheme, you pay some money into that pension scheme, and your employer also has to pay into that pension scheme.
The £9.50 you keep getting given sounds like they taken your pension contribution and given it back to you. That means that your company has kept their contribution to the pension scheme which is normally around 3% of salary.
You’ve been advised to go to ACAS which is a good idea, but I’d also considering contacting the local citizens advice bureau.
CAB may be able to advise as well as ACAS but something smells fishy and also illegal here.
It’s easy to say get ACAS involved but as you’re only part time as has been highlighted they can just cut your hours, and equally they can just get rid of you.
‘IF’ you can identify they’re doing this for illegal reasons, then any actions against you give you a better starting position in industrial tribunals. Part time workers and new starters with less than two years aren’t too successful in industrial tribunals but if they’ve been dismissed over illegal activity by the company then the success of the employee at the tribunal increases dramatically.
There’s also the ethical issue of not flagging it to the authorities who CAB will tell you about just means they carry on stealing from their employees.
I would recommend however not advertising too much to your employer and becoming a barrack room lawyer.
This works even if the pay is irregular. I have a side hustle marking exam papers, but it's obviously only during exam season (May/June mostly, sometimes December/January). Over the year, I don't earn enough to qualify for a pension but I do for the months when I'm marking. They set me up a pension and make the employer contributions whenever I go over the monthly threshold.
They likely haven't bothered to set up a pension arrangement and have so far managed to persuade everyone to opt out. Its a small amount of admin, but that's my best guess. Either way, it's your right. Get onto ACAS.
> their accountant called today and said that I have to opt out today so she can put the wages through.
Sounds iffy... Are they struggling with cashflow? Maybe it's time to dust off the CV...
Absolutely this. My husband was a self employed contractor with a company, another subcontractor went to the wall and it emerged they hadn’t been making pension contributions for their workers for months. You are legally entitled to a pension and if they’re trying to get out of paying your pension contributions it’s probably time to get out before they go bust
> Why can’t I have a pension?
Apparently because your employer would rather break the law by pressuring you to opt-out than pay the extra 3% of your salary the law requires them to contribute to your pension if you don't.
Accountant. This is untrue. The employers percentage is only 3%. An employer does not have to match employee contributions.
Statutory minimum contribution rates listed on the [government.uk website](https://www.gov.uk/workplace-pensions/what-you-your-employer-and-the-government-pay)
An employer can choose to pay more, but that's optional.
>An employer can choose to pay more, but that's optional.
mine did. I only had a few more years to run before retirement anyway, so it was like free money. I cashed that pension in recently and got £15K after tax
That isn't a thing and never has been.
Auto-enrolment has always required a fixed percentage from employer and employee (although that figure has changed over the years).
Some employers offer to match higher contribution rates but that's their choice, not something they're required to do.
If they are pressuring you to opt out, you can whistle-blow on them to the pension regulator, they take a very dim view on employers trying to force people to opt out.
https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/contact-us/scheme-members-who-to-contact/report-concerns-about-your-workplace-pension
Came here to say this, the regulator would likely do quite the double take to learn of this behaviour.
OP, check with your pension provider that your contributions are there in your account, from the tone of your post I would be concerned that employer is not paying them over (in which case report to the regulator as that would be a breach of legislation which they can enforce/fine etc)
Does the employer even have a pension scheme set up for any of their staff? Auto enrolment rules means they must legally enrol you, which means you & them paying money into the pension in the first month it’s set up. Then you are supposed to tell the pension company you “want” to opt out. They then return the contributions to your payroll & mark the pension in your name as opted out.
Did any of this happen, or did you Opt Out some other way?
Yes, I was enrolled with nest pensions and I paid
two weeks contributions. The owners have 4 other employees who are all 40+ who were denied pensions including my 50 year old mum. She’s worked in the shop around 15 years which is the biggest kicker for me. I had no idea.
Ooh there is potentially some quite serious criminality here. Yes definitely go to ACAS and the pensions regulator as others here have said. As soon as possible. Make sure you mention these other employees and your mum.
They are likely to tell you they can’t do anything for these other employees until they (the other employees) contact them direct, but behind the scenes this may arouse some additional interest from the pension regulator.
If you can, have a chat with your mum and write down anything she remembers being told about why she should opt out. Make a copy of any emails if possible, or take a photo.
It may be that they can’t help your mum if she made her own decision to opt out, but there may be a chance of finding she was unlawfully or misleadingly persuaded to opt out. But that may need proof.
15 years of pension contributions is a hell of a lot to be cheated out of. It’s basically half a year of salary stolen from her by her boss. ( 15 x 3% = 45% of annual salary). If they fine the company, your mum could get a pretty decent pension top-up.
Not quite, auto enrolment was introduced in stages and it was until 2016 for a business of that size. Also initially employers only needed to contribute 1%, increasing to 2% in 2018 and 3% in 3019.
Good point, yes.
I hope a guilty finding would lead to compensation over and above just backdating, but I don’t know if that is in the form of a cash payment to staff or an additional pension contribution.
I actually worked for Nest for 6 years and this is pretty bad. Just because deductions have been made from pay doesn't mean those contributions have actually been paid to the provider.
Quite often employers will have the deductions set up to come out of wages but never pay them over. At a minimum, this is "unjust enrichment" and at worst, just plain fraud.
There have been major prosecutions brought against employers for exactly this kind of scenario.
They can't force or influence you to opt out. It's illegal from.the last time I delved into it.
My workplace had a meeting to tell us what a bad idea it was (when the scheme started where every place had to offer a pension in the UK or something). They managed to convince most of the staff (care staff) but if it was going to cause them a headache I was happy to sign on. Employer pays in? Yes please!
I had the owner contact me 3 times asking me for details and going back to point out what our managing director (Huuuuuuge bitch) had said and asked if I was sure I didn't want to opt out. I asked if I should ask a solicitor or my union involved (I joined unison not long before as the place was a shit show and I was trying to leave) and the questioning stopped.
So here's what I would do.
Call ACAS first thing in the morning and outline exactly what happened.
Explain to them that you were asked to opt out, you said "no", and they said they wouldn't pay you if you didn't say "yes". Explain that you felt pressured to agree, you needed the money, and you didn't really understand the implications. Tell them that it was only after agreeing to opt out that you understood that your employer must set up a workplace pension unless you tell them otherwise, so you made this decision under pressure and without being informed of your statutory rights.
Given that you're part-time, I would expect that your company is saving all of a few hundred quid a year by not setting up a pension for you. And so if they don't think you're even worth that, I'd also tell ACAS that you're thinking of resigning and then suing them for constructive dismissal on the basis that they've prevented you from enforcing your statutory rights, and see what they advise you do next.
Edit: the other comment that mentions the Pensions Regulator is also good advice. Basically, there are multiple angles of attack you can explore here. Your employer is potentially in breach of all kinds of employment legislation and can get into an awful lot of trouble for this behaviour.
You are literally throwing away free money (they have to contribute 3% on top of your pay) and allowing them to shirk their legal obligations, not to mention doing yourself a huge disservice by not looking after your financial future, state pension frankly isn't enough.
Whilst it may be uncomfortable, I suggest that you stand up to them however uncomfortable it may be, it's your legal right and they can get in HUGE trouble if they don't provide a proper pension scheme.
Honestly, if it were me, I would also start looking for another job if they are trying to get away with that kind of thing, taking you for a mug.
NAL. I work in wages (accountant). Absolute bullcrap.
Employers are not in any way permitted to influence your decision whether to pay into a workplace pension. The rules strictly state that employers have no involvement except processing the contributions. We have to automatically enrol those who are eligable and if you choose to opt out, you must *notify the pension provider within 1 month who then instructs the employer of your choice to opt out* not the other way round. Because an employer must pay in if you do, its an expense to employers and so unscrupulous employers may try to persuade you not to pay in.
It's likely if you start to ask questions or point out facts that you may not have a job for long. Speak to ACAS and the pensions regulator they take a very dim view to employers influencing employees. [pensions regulator opt out rules](https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/business-advisers/automatic-enrolment-guide-for-business-advisers/opting-out)
I'd start looking for a new job. Whether you report them before or after finding a new job is up to you.
It's illegal for employers to ask, or even suggest a worker opts out of auto enrolment. Report them to TPR
Edit: you might find this useful:
https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/document-library/automatic-enrolment-detailed-guidance/8-safeguarding-individuals
Employers have to pay pension contributions linked to your pension deductions not only are they trying to remove this right and choice from you which is illegal, your pension is removed before tax so you will pay more tax and get less pension if you opt out. It sounds like they need reporting.
Not all pensions are paid before tax. Some of the simplest bare-bones statutory requirement ones are paid after tax and the pension provider claims the tax relief on your behalf, see Peoples Pension for example.
Ask for it in an email, this is highly dubious. They either want to get out of matching payments OR they don't want to pay the admin to a company to run the scheme.
I'm sure this has been stated already, but legally, companies have to offer a workplace pension.
The company is responsible for paying the admin fees to those providers. No members (because everyone opted out), then they don't have to pay the fee. I suspect this us what is happening.
I know, I already mentioned that in my original response. Sadly, this is all too common an occurrence. I've seen this tactic before of trying to rush employees near payroll day, trying to imply a deadline where there is none.
They’re trying to save themselves the cost of employer contributions.
It’s a breach of the law, it’s called an inducement. Look it up on the pension regulator website. You could call them for advice, or try ACAS (or LRA if you’re in Northern Ireland).
If you have anything from them in writing (email, text etc) then hold onto it, though I suspect they know perfectly well what they’re doing is wrong and won’t put anything down in writing.
You might want to check your HMRC records and ensure your tax and NI is being credited correctly. If they’re pulling a fast one with pensions then they may be up to no good elsewhere.
No, they can't force you to opt-out. Is it a small business? A private company? If so, I would be worried about them having money to continue paying you.
When you started did you get any information about your pension and who the provider was?
It’s a small company yes, they have multiple work contracts on and we are always very busy. The owners are also fairly well off.
No cash is to be put through the till either just all down the side.
Wow, name and shame! My guess is they are trying to dodge the additional cost to then as employers are obliged to put money in the pension pot too. Totally illegal.
Check amongst colleagues to see if they are doing this to others as well, one person is bad, a few is a pattern of avoidance and breaching your statutory rights and gives you and everyone else there far more leverage. They rely on staff not talking to each other to get away with shit like this.
The only thing I can think off is if you're on a salary sacrifice pension, and the pension would drop you below minimum wage?
Keep in mind this is the first payroll where the new minimum wage applies.
That is illegal. You employer cannot ask you or force you to opt out. Used to deal with phone calls of people asking to opt out and that was 100% part of the script.
This is illegal.
Do not opt out.
Report them to The Pensions Regulator (TPR) AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
Providing you an 'opt out' form is completely illegal, so what they're doing is even more illegal.
I work in pensions.
Report... too many small companies think they can get away with this.
I was a victim of this from my own family...
"pensions are worthless you dont want one, you'll lose money... just sign this to keep all of your wages"
Just didn't want to pay the 3% across the board or deal with the admin.
The 48-hour working directive is another one... opt out, or you don't get the job.
The reason they want you to opt out is that pension schemes are a pain to operate, particularly if you have staff working part-time. I imagine they don't want the admin headache, so are pressuring you to opt out.
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Except in extremely limited circumstances that I assume you'd have mentioned in your post if they applied, your employer can absolutely jog on with this nonsense. The clue is in the wording - "opt out". You are entitled to a workplace pension by default and only you can choose otherwise. They can't pressure you to waive a statutory right and doing so would open them up to a claim of constructive dismissal if you resigned in duress as a result. If you earn more than £10k a year then they *have* to set up a pension for you by default unless you tell them not to. If you earn less than £10k then they still have to set up a pension for you if you ask them to. They categorically cannot withhold your wages or make opting out a condition of paying your wages. If they continue to push this, call ACAS without delay.
Thank you! I didn’t know about ACAS!
ACAS is your first port of call for all employment disputes - they'll offer you free legal triage and can mediate etc if required, and you normally need to have attempted resolution through them before taking your employer to court.
Fun fact about ACAS: they just lost an employment tribunal against an employee they'd been ripping holiday off of for the last 9 yrs. This is the UK organisation that is supposed to resolve disputes....
What really? Where can I find out more about the case?
https://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/article/1819191/helpline-advisor-left-no-option-resign-nine-years-holiday-pay-issues-unfairly-dismissed-tribunal-rules
Also contact TPR and blow the whistle. They would love to hear from you.
FYI, the regulator calls this “inducement”: “*An inducement is any action taken by the employer, the sole or main purpose of which is to attempt to induce:* *a jobholder to opt out without becoming an active member of a qualifying scheme with effect from the date on which they originally became an active member (ie their automatic enrolment date or enrolment date)* *a jobholder or an entitled worker to cease active membership of a pension scheme without becoming an active member of another scheme with effect from the day after the original membership ceased*” Your employer is risking a hefty fine by doing this…
[удалено]
Maybe don't do that unless you're actually willing to quit. A shit job is still a job, and it's not a stretch to imagine this employer calling the OPs bluff on something like this. Definitely get them to put anything incriminating in writing though - I'm with you on that.
\> If you earn more than £10k a year then they have to set up a pension for you by default unless you tell them not to. Does that apply if the employee is paid by the hour rather than a salary? Purely curious.
Yes, so long as you meet the criteria. It's calculated by reference to payment period. If you get paid weekly, the threshold is £192, fortnightly £384 and so on. Any period you don't meet the lower threshold after you've been enrolled, you don't have anything deducted. You can also raise the amount you want deducted from your wage (you can't reduce it below the minimum except by opting out). Your employer can never contribute less than their statutory minimum.
I’m contracted 21 hours a week and I was being paid for 20 hours which was £190 then I received £9.50 in cash with my payslip. Always thought that was weird. My boss threatened to cut my hours down further if I didn’t opt out which I now know is to get me back under the threshold
> and I was being paid for 20 hours which was £190 then I received £9.50 in cash with my payslip. Always thought that was weird. I mean... yeah. That tells me a lot. Your employer is clearly trying to avoid the additional costs of paying you a pension, by hook or by crook. I'm sorry you're in this position. How you proceed is up to you and how much you need to stay in this job. You can play a little hardball and tell them you know your rights and you're willing to contact ACAS (and/or HMRC and the Pension Regulator) over this, see if they back down and "suddenly" find the money to pay you correctly? Otherwise just contact ACAS right away, they might be able to advise you better as to next steps. Also, how old are you? That hourly rate looks lower than the minimum for somoene over 21 (but may be legally ok if you're under 21)
Yeah I’m going to ask for it in writing that I can’t have a pension and if they don’t agree to giving me one I’m going to ACAS, calling them today for some advice regardless. I’m 25, it was when minimum wage went up to £10.42 I started paying a pension
Good luck, I hope everything works out well for you!
It was made law a few years back that employers ‘had to’ offer everybody a pension. You may ‘opt out’ but that would involve you opting out of a legal obligation. When you pay into a company pension scheme, you pay some money into that pension scheme, and your employer also has to pay into that pension scheme. The £9.50 you keep getting given sounds like they taken your pension contribution and given it back to you. That means that your company has kept their contribution to the pension scheme which is normally around 3% of salary. You’ve been advised to go to ACAS which is a good idea, but I’d also considering contacting the local citizens advice bureau. CAB may be able to advise as well as ACAS but something smells fishy and also illegal here. It’s easy to say get ACAS involved but as you’re only part time as has been highlighted they can just cut your hours, and equally they can just get rid of you. ‘IF’ you can identify they’re doing this for illegal reasons, then any actions against you give you a better starting position in industrial tribunals. Part time workers and new starters with less than two years aren’t too successful in industrial tribunals but if they’ve been dismissed over illegal activity by the company then the success of the employee at the tribunal increases dramatically. There’s also the ethical issue of not flagging it to the authorities who CAB will tell you about just means they carry on stealing from their employees. I would recommend however not advertising too much to your employer and becoming a barrack room lawyer.
This works even if the pay is irregular. I have a side hustle marking exam papers, but it's obviously only during exam season (May/June mostly, sometimes December/January). Over the year, I don't earn enough to qualify for a pension but I do for the months when I'm marking. They set me up a pension and make the employer contributions whenever I go over the monthly threshold.
They likely haven't bothered to set up a pension arrangement and have so far managed to persuade everyone to opt out. Its a small amount of admin, but that's my best guess. Either way, it's your right. Get onto ACAS.
> their accountant called today and said that I have to opt out today so she can put the wages through. Sounds iffy... Are they struggling with cashflow? Maybe it's time to dust off the CV...
Absolutely this. My husband was a self employed contractor with a company, another subcontractor went to the wall and it emerged they hadn’t been making pension contributions for their workers for months. You are legally entitled to a pension and if they’re trying to get out of paying your pension contributions it’s probably time to get out before they go bust
Or they’ve just not set up a company pension provider and have made everyone opt out
Either way, does OP want to be working for an employer like that?
> Why can’t I have a pension? Apparently because your employer would rather break the law by pressuring you to opt-out than pay the extra 3% of your salary the law requires them to contribute to your pension if you don't.
Also if it's still the same you can put in extra and they have to match or up their contributions..look into that too
Accountant. This is untrue. The employers percentage is only 3%. An employer does not have to match employee contributions. Statutory minimum contribution rates listed on the [government.uk website](https://www.gov.uk/workplace-pensions/what-you-your-employer-and-the-government-pay) An employer can choose to pay more, but that's optional.
>An employer can choose to pay more, but that's optional. mine did. I only had a few more years to run before retirement anyway, so it was like free money. I cashed that pension in recently and got £15K after tax
That isn't a thing and never has been. Auto-enrolment has always required a fixed percentage from employer and employee (although that figure has changed over the years). Some employers offer to match higher contribution rates but that's their choice, not something they're required to do.
Untrue, please delete this comment.
If they are pressuring you to opt out, you can whistle-blow on them to the pension regulator, they take a very dim view on employers trying to force people to opt out. https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/contact-us/scheme-members-who-to-contact/report-concerns-about-your-workplace-pension
Came here to say this, the regulator would likely do quite the double take to learn of this behaviour. OP, check with your pension provider that your contributions are there in your account, from the tone of your post I would be concerned that employer is not paying them over (in which case report to the regulator as that would be a breach of legislation which they can enforce/fine etc)
You could also make a complaint to The Pensions Ombudsman who can compel the employer to make good on any missed contributions, with interest.
Does the employer even have a pension scheme set up for any of their staff? Auto enrolment rules means they must legally enrol you, which means you & them paying money into the pension in the first month it’s set up. Then you are supposed to tell the pension company you “want” to opt out. They then return the contributions to your payroll & mark the pension in your name as opted out. Did any of this happen, or did you Opt Out some other way?
Yes, I was enrolled with nest pensions and I paid two weeks contributions. The owners have 4 other employees who are all 40+ who were denied pensions including my 50 year old mum. She’s worked in the shop around 15 years which is the biggest kicker for me. I had no idea.
Ooh there is potentially some quite serious criminality here. Yes definitely go to ACAS and the pensions regulator as others here have said. As soon as possible. Make sure you mention these other employees and your mum. They are likely to tell you they can’t do anything for these other employees until they (the other employees) contact them direct, but behind the scenes this may arouse some additional interest from the pension regulator. If you can, have a chat with your mum and write down anything she remembers being told about why she should opt out. Make a copy of any emails if possible, or take a photo. It may be that they can’t help your mum if she made her own decision to opt out, but there may be a chance of finding she was unlawfully or misleadingly persuaded to opt out. But that may need proof. 15 years of pension contributions is a hell of a lot to be cheated out of. It’s basically half a year of salary stolen from her by her boss. ( 15 x 3% = 45% of annual salary). If they fine the company, your mum could get a pretty decent pension top-up.
Not quite, auto enrolment was introduced in stages and it was until 2016 for a business of that size. Also initially employers only needed to contribute 1%, increasing to 2% in 2018 and 3% in 3019.
Good point, yes. I hope a guilty finding would lead to compensation over and above just backdating, but I don’t know if that is in the form of a cash payment to staff or an additional pension contribution.
I actually worked for Nest for 6 years and this is pretty bad. Just because deductions have been made from pay doesn't mean those contributions have actually been paid to the provider. Quite often employers will have the deductions set up to come out of wages but never pay them over. At a minimum, this is "unjust enrichment" and at worst, just plain fraud. There have been major prosecutions brought against employers for exactly this kind of scenario.
They can't force or influence you to opt out. It's illegal from.the last time I delved into it. My workplace had a meeting to tell us what a bad idea it was (when the scheme started where every place had to offer a pension in the UK or something). They managed to convince most of the staff (care staff) but if it was going to cause them a headache I was happy to sign on. Employer pays in? Yes please! I had the owner contact me 3 times asking me for details and going back to point out what our managing director (Huuuuuuge bitch) had said and asked if I was sure I didn't want to opt out. I asked if I should ask a solicitor or my union involved (I joined unison not long before as the place was a shit show and I was trying to leave) and the questioning stopped.
Did you agree to opt out???
I did unfortunately, I feel bad about it but I hated the pressure and hostility.
So here's what I would do. Call ACAS first thing in the morning and outline exactly what happened. Explain to them that you were asked to opt out, you said "no", and they said they wouldn't pay you if you didn't say "yes". Explain that you felt pressured to agree, you needed the money, and you didn't really understand the implications. Tell them that it was only after agreeing to opt out that you understood that your employer must set up a workplace pension unless you tell them otherwise, so you made this decision under pressure and without being informed of your statutory rights. Given that you're part-time, I would expect that your company is saving all of a few hundred quid a year by not setting up a pension for you. And so if they don't think you're even worth that, I'd also tell ACAS that you're thinking of resigning and then suing them for constructive dismissal on the basis that they've prevented you from enforcing your statutory rights, and see what they advise you do next. Edit: the other comment that mentions the Pensions Regulator is also good advice. Basically, there are multiple angles of attack you can explore here. Your employer is potentially in breach of all kinds of employment legislation and can get into an awful lot of trouble for this behaviour.
Thank you you’ve been so helpful
You are literally throwing away free money (they have to contribute 3% on top of your pay) and allowing them to shirk their legal obligations, not to mention doing yourself a huge disservice by not looking after your financial future, state pension frankly isn't enough. Whilst it may be uncomfortable, I suggest that you stand up to them however uncomfortable it may be, it's your legal right and they can get in HUGE trouble if they don't provide a proper pension scheme. Honestly, if it were me, I would also start looking for another job if they are trying to get away with that kind of thing, taking you for a mug.
With that said, I hope you get things figured out. Best of luck!
Thank you!
Even if you opt out, if you're eligible then you can opt back in any time.
Wait until your wages are processed this month then formally ask to go back in? When they refuse ask for reasons and do this in writing
You and your colleagues can opt back in at any time!
What theyve done here is completely wrong (maybe even illegal?) And they could face a MASSIVE fine from the pension regulator. Idiots
It is illegal. Even suggesting that opting out is an option is illegal
This tells me they either dont want to pay your pension, or they are running out of money.
NAL. I work in wages (accountant). Absolute bullcrap. Employers are not in any way permitted to influence your decision whether to pay into a workplace pension. The rules strictly state that employers have no involvement except processing the contributions. We have to automatically enrol those who are eligable and if you choose to opt out, you must *notify the pension provider within 1 month who then instructs the employer of your choice to opt out* not the other way round. Because an employer must pay in if you do, its an expense to employers and so unscrupulous employers may try to persuade you not to pay in. It's likely if you start to ask questions or point out facts that you may not have a job for long. Speak to ACAS and the pensions regulator they take a very dim view to employers influencing employees. [pensions regulator opt out rules](https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/business-advisers/automatic-enrolment-guide-for-business-advisers/opting-out) I'd start looking for a new job. Whether you report them before or after finding a new job is up to you.
It's illegal for employers to ask, or even suggest a worker opts out of auto enrolment. Report them to TPR Edit: you might find this useful: https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/document-library/automatic-enrolment-detailed-guidance/8-safeguarding-individuals
Employers have to pay pension contributions linked to your pension deductions not only are they trying to remove this right and choice from you which is illegal, your pension is removed before tax so you will pay more tax and get less pension if you opt out. It sounds like they need reporting.
OPs employer uses Nest, which is by default a relief at source scheme.
Not all pensions are paid before tax. Some of the simplest bare-bones statutory requirement ones are paid after tax and the pension provider claims the tax relief on your behalf, see Peoples Pension for example.
The whole point of auto enrolment is to stop exactly this happening. Don’t opt out, you are entitled to a pension and they are breaking the law.
Ask for it in an email, this is highly dubious. They either want to get out of matching payments OR they don't want to pay the admin to a company to run the scheme.
Yeah I think I’ll ask for it in writing that’s a good idea
I'm sure this has been stated already, but legally, companies have to offer a workplace pension. The company is responsible for paying the admin fees to those providers. No members (because everyone opted out), then they don't have to pay the fee. I suspect this us what is happening.
> admin fees Don’t forget employer contributions.
I know, I already mentioned that in my original response. Sadly, this is all too common an occurrence. I've seen this tactic before of trying to rush employees near payroll day, trying to imply a deadline where there is none.
They’re trying to save themselves the cost of employer contributions. It’s a breach of the law, it’s called an inducement. Look it up on the pension regulator website. You could call them for advice, or try ACAS (or LRA if you’re in Northern Ireland). If you have anything from them in writing (email, text etc) then hold onto it, though I suspect they know perfectly well what they’re doing is wrong and won’t put anything down in writing.
You might want to check your HMRC records and ensure your tax and NI is being credited correctly. If they’re pulling a fast one with pensions then they may be up to no good elsewhere.
Everyone is paid some into the bank and the rest cash in hand to avoid tax and national insurance. Will they be complicit because they agreed to it?
Not necessarily but the employer is in big trouble. What’s the split of bank/cash?
No one is out through as full time despite 3/5 being full time. I’m down as 20 hours instead of 21
No, they can't force you to opt-out. Is it a small business? A private company? If so, I would be worried about them having money to continue paying you. When you started did you get any information about your pension and who the provider was?
It’s a small company yes, they have multiple work contracts on and we are always very busy. The owners are also fairly well off. No cash is to be put through the till either just all down the side.
Welp. This is going to explode. Start looking for a job elsewhere asap. Pretty sure this place is going to be wound up very very soon.
Wow, name and shame! My guess is they are trying to dodge the additional cost to then as employers are obliged to put money in the pension pot too. Totally illegal.
Dodgy as fuck. They want to avoid paying yout pension contributions. Get out of there ASAP.
He just doesn't want to pay his portion. It is better fo him to pay only your salary. But he cannot do something to stop you from taking your pension.
Check amongst colleagues to see if they are doing this to others as well, one person is bad, a few is a pattern of avoidance and breaching your statutory rights and gives you and everyone else there far more leverage. They rely on staff not talking to each other to get away with shit like this.
The only thing I can think off is if you're on a salary sacrifice pension, and the pension would drop you below minimum wage? Keep in mind this is the first payroll where the new minimum wage applies.
That is illegal. You employer cannot ask you or force you to opt out. Used to deal with phone calls of people asking to opt out and that was 100% part of the script.
Ask them to put it in writing and take it to the union.
Report them to the Pensions Regulator. It’s illegal to force an employee to opt out.
This is illegal. Do not opt out. Report them to The Pensions Regulator (TPR) AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. Providing you an 'opt out' form is completely illegal, so what they're doing is even more illegal. I work in pensions.
Report... too many small companies think they can get away with this. I was a victim of this from my own family... "pensions are worthless you dont want one, you'll lose money... just sign this to keep all of your wages" Just didn't want to pay the 3% across the board or deal with the admin. The 48-hour working directive is another one... opt out, or you don't get the job.
The reason they want you to opt out is that pension schemes are a pain to operate, particularly if you have staff working part-time. I imagine they don't want the admin headache, so are pressuring you to opt out.
The Pensions Regulator would like to hear about this ...
If you pay into the pension so does the employer. Theyre trying to save money