Encouraging employees to join their company pension plan

Currently, AE (now officially called My Future Fund) is getting lots of media coverage and has a confirmed start date of 30 September 2025. This development will directly affect both employees and businesses, making it imperative to start planning the appropriate approach. 

Benefits of joining the workplace pension scheme prior to AE implementation

Prior to the introduction of AE, there are three primary incentives for employees to join their existing workplace pension scheme, which are likely to offer superior benefits compared to the AE proposals:  

1. More generous tax-relief for higher rate taxpayers Higher rate taxpayers enjoy tax-relief at 40% as opposed to the proposed 25% within the AE proposals. Basic rate taxpayers will get tax-relief at their marginal rate. 
2. Higher contribution amounts In year 1 of AE, contributions are limited to 1.5% from employers and employees. The majority of Zurich pension schemes have contribution rates of 5% from employers and 5% from employees*.  
3. Greater product flexibility Members of Zurich pension schemes can expect to enjoy much greater flexibility, fund choice, and access to the investment expertise of Zurich Investments. 

Engaging employees is key  

Effective engagement with employees regarding their pension is nearly as important as the design of the pension scheme itself. It is essential that all employees fully understand the benefits offered by their employer, enabling them to make informed decisions about their future financial well-being. Key considerations include:  

Revamping the induction process: Ensure that new employees are introduced to the company pension scheme at the earliest opportunity and are informed about where they can access further information.  

Embracing technology: Tools such as contribution calculators are instrumental in helping employees understand their potential retirement outcomes. Zurich Connect, our interactive employee retirement portal, provides informative videos, interactive tools, calculators, and a library of relevant documentation to enhance employee engagement.  

Targeted communication: Recognise the varying needs and priorities of employees across different age groups. Younger employees may be more engaged with general savings concepts, with the pension pot being part of their overall strategy.  

Financial education: Hosting workplace or online financial wellbeing seminars can prompt employees to consider their future financial needs. Zurich’s Customer Relationship Team is available to organise employee engagement sessions. 

Retirement can be a complex concept for many employees. At Zurich, we recognise that different employees need different levels of support, so our approach can be tailored for scheme members. 

Zurich Connect 

Zurich Connect is a unique interactive employee retirement portal, which we will tailor to your company. With helpful videos, interactive tools and calculators, as well as a library of relevant documentation, Zurich Connect will transform how employees view their company pension. 

Insightful resources for employees 

Our Pension Matters magazine is designed for members of group pension schemes. Its objective is to empower employees with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions about their pension options and encourage them to take action – like making additional contributions for example. 

Zurich’s online portal 

Keeping track of how your pension savings are performing is an essential element of our proposition. All employees will be able to access their own secure, personalised portal to track their current savings, their contributions, what their future retirement pot might project to, how their funds are performing, and much more. Employers and HR can keep oversight of key metrics to track the level of employee engagement. 

Workplace information and support 

It’s our people that will always make the difference for your employees. Employees are best served with a mix of communication methods; while online works for some, others prefer to hear first-hand and face-to-face. Zurich’s Customer Relationship Team will organise employee engagement sessions for scheme members. 

Call on the support of Zurich and your scheme advisor  

At Zurich, we recognise the challenge of employee engagement and have a dedicated team committed to ensuring employees understand and appreciate the valuable employee benefit that a pension scheme provides, while helping them to reach their retirement goals. Getting to the heart of what employees need and ensuring that the benefits a company provides needs the right attention. The workforce of today has evolved but you can use the support of Zurich to help ensure that your business is seen as evolving too. With our help, reviewing your employee benefits offering may take far less effort, time and cost than you thought, while delivering a real benefit to your business.  

Talk to your Company Pension Advisor Call us on 01 209 2299, email us at corporatepensions@zurich.ie or visit our website at zurich.ie/corporate

*Source: Zurich Life, January 2025.