Disclosure of Information

When making certain future changes to their pension scheme, employers should keep in mind the requirement to consult with their employees before making the change. In this blog post, we run through the key aspects of member consultations to provide a reminder of what exactly employers need to do, and why they need to do it.

Who?

Employers who have 50 or more employees based in Great Britain are subject to consultation requirements set out in the relevant consultation regulations. This threshold is based on the number of employees the employer has, even if some of those employees are not pension scheme members.Continue Reading Talking pension changes

Recent determinations of the Pensions Ombudsman¹ have considered the extent to which employers should provide information on pension rights to employees who have notified them of a terminal illness.

The law

There is no general duty on employers to advise employees about their pension rights, or to safeguard employees’ economic well-being. Indeed, the law prohibits anyone other than a person authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority from advising on pension rights.

However, a distinction should be drawn between “advising” and “providing information”. In some situations the law imposes specific duties on employers to provide information about pension rights to employees. When the law is silent, however, getting things right can be tricky.Continue Reading Providing information about pensions to terminally ill employees – how far should employers go?