The TUC has today (Monday) revealed the UK’s pension blackspots.
The analysis shows that in some industries, like hospitality and agriculture, six in ten workers are not enrolled in a pension.
The TUC says many are missing out on a decent retirement because they earn less than £10,000 – the level of earnings at which employers must enrol someone into a workplace pension.
Despite the success of pension auto-enrolment, nearly 9 million UK workers are still unable to save into a pension scheme.
The five industries with the lowest level of pension cover are:
The TUC also found evidence of a “pension lottery” among those saving into a workplace pension.
In low-paid sectors, like wholesale and retail, nine out of ten savers received contributions worth less than 8% of salary from their employer.
By contrast, in industries like financial services (where there are more high earners), the vast majority of savers received more than 8% in contributions from their bosses.
TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said:
“Auto-enrolment has been a great success. But it’s not a case of ‘job done’.
“Millions remain at risk of poverty in retirement because they are saving nothing, or very little, into a pension scheme.
“We urgently need the government to help more low-paid workers join schemes. And ministers must set out a plan for increasing contributions from employers.”
ENDS
Notes to editors:
- The five industries with the lowest pension provision
Industry |
Number of workforce without pension |
% of workforce without pension |
Agriculture, forestry and fishing |
93,000 |
65.4 |
Accommodation and food service activities |
908,000 |
59.5 |
Other service activities |
270,000 |
55.7 |
Construction |
493,000 |
50.5 |
Arts, entertainment and recreation |
253,000 |
48.2 |
Source: ONS
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