More input in financial planning is required from employers to help staff save properly for retirement, a survey has found.
On the heels of a report released yesterday that 98% of staff severely underestimate how much money employers invest in them via benefits, a report by business consultants Watson Wyatt: The Future of Retirement Savings, said employers must raise awareness of benefits schemes to retain staff.
Nearly three-quarters of large UK employers want to offer financial education and planning assistance to their staff, with the majority of them (almost 60%) fearing employees may not have adequate retirement income.
Employees who were polled were in agreement, with 85% who said that pensions will be inadequate within the next 15 years, and alternative ways to fund retirement will be required.
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“Many employers invest a significant proportion of payroll in pensions and other employee benefits,” said Gary Smith, a senior consultant at Watson Wyatt. “But they are frustrated that the value of these benefits is too often not fully understood or appreciated, and that some employees make financial decisions that they will later come to regret.”
The rest of the report is released next month, covering responses from 2,000 employees and 70 employers from large private sector organisations.
