Employer contributions not increasing

tallalex85

Hi,

I've got a workplace pension. My employer pays in a percentage based on the time I've been with the organisation - 3% after 2 years, 6% after 4 years.

Over the summer I passed the 4 year mark. Unfortunately it didn't occur to me to check the pension contribution until last weeks payslip - where I noticed that I was only getting 3%. I asked our HR team and was told that it was my responsibility to ask them to upgrade their contribution (which I now have) - and they won't back date it. I can't see any mention of this in the paperwork I received about the pension.

I've not exactly lost out on thousands, but I'm a little annoyed! Is this normal? Is there anything I can do about it?

Thanks!

Linton

Normal that mistakes are made in the payroll - not uncommon. To fix it suggest you talk to your manager.

Your_Hero

What does your contract of employment say?

tallalex85

@Linton

My frustration is that this isn't a mistake - it looks like a deliberate tactic to save money. They don't increase until asked. I certainly can't be the only one that doesn't check the pension box of the payslip every month to see if it's accurate.

@Your Hero

Unfortunately it's very vague. "X will comply with the employer pension duties in accordance with Part 1 of the Pensions Act 2008 and any statutory requirement to automatically enrol you in a relevant pension scheme. Further details of the current pension scheme can be obtained from..."

Linton

tallalex85 wrote: »

@Linton

My frustration is that this isn't a mistake - it looks like a deliberate tactic to save money. They don't increase until asked. I certainly can't be the only one that doesn't check the pension box of the payslip every month to see if it's accurate.

Seems very unlikely that its a devious plot - why offer the increase at all if they want to save money. Far more likely that the only person who knows you have been there 4 years without hunting through records is yourself.

tallalex85

ha! You're probably right. Maybe I'm jumping to conclusions - but I presumed the payroll system is sophisticated enough to know these things (there are thousands of employees). It makes me very suspicious of everything else - I'll have to check there isn't anything else they're not giving me, simply because I didn't ask!

tallalex85

Plus they're not asking for any proof that I've been here four years - so they must have a record somewhere.

xylophone

Ask your employer to update the payroll software?

Or write to the employer/pension administrator, explaining that you can find no reference in your contract etc to any requirement for the employee to request the increased contribution and requesting that in the circumstances, the missing contributions should be credited?


Have you asked your colleagues whether they know about the rule? If so, how did they find out?

If just by chance as you did, you might include in your letter a suggestion that contracts of employment for new employees should include an explanation of the rule and that current employees should be advised by letter/memo with their next pay advice?

pinkteapot

I'd try asking them for back-payments. A few years back, I got a large pay-rise. At the time, my employer was making 10% pension contributions. They forgot to increase my contributions (so they were still 10% of my old salary) and I didn't notice until almost a year later, when I got my annual pension statement. (The employer contributions weren't noted on my payslips in that job).

They made a lump-sum contribution of the missing amounts, plus extra for the investment gains those contributions would have had.

Unless it's written down somewhere that you have to prompt them to increase your contributions, I'd say it's fair to assume that they keep on top of it themselves.

Certainly worth asking again, even if you don't want to kick up a huge stink about it.

I would definitely mention it to other people you know who have been with the company a long time!

greenglide

Further details of the current pension scheme can be obtained from...

Is this the scheme booklet? If so that really ought to say that their contributions do not increase until you tell them.

I would expect them to increase them automatically. It is possible that they really do increase them automatically but failed (for whatever reason) in your case.

WobblyDog

I wouldn't be happy if my employer expected me to remind them when it was time to increase their pension contributions, and refused to backdate.

It raises the question of what other undocumented things do they expect staff to remind them about, and how much company-time are staff expected to spend guessing what these things might be and checking them? It's likely to be cheaper for the company in the long run if the HR department takes responsibility for these things.