Project leader: Alan Marsh
Sponsor: DSS
Period: September 2000 to January 2001
Background and Aims
The main aims is to compile representative information on the proportion of private sector employers providing pensions and the types of pension they provide. There is also interest in recent and planned changes to employer pension provision, particularly in the context of a revised legislative and policy environment. The Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999 introduced stakeholder pension (available from April 2001) and new provisions for pension sharing on divorce. Comparisons can also be made with the previous surveys of this type that were carried out in 1996 and 1998 so as to examine trends in employer pension provision.
Project Design
The sample of around 3,000 private sector employers was drawn from the Inter Departmental Business Register (compiled from VAT and PAYE returns) and is stratified by employee size bands. Organisations selected for interview are contacted in advance to establish that they are eligible for the survey and to identify the most appropriate person to interview. A data sheet is then sent in advance of the interview to enable respondents to gather the necessary information. The main interview takes place by telephone (using Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing). Detailed information is collected on all types of current pension provision (occupational schemes, Group Personal Pension plans, and employer's contributions to Personal Pension plans) as well as closed or frozen schemes.
Importance of Research
The project will provide the most current information on employer pension provision and will be nationally representative. It will be among the first research to explore employer's awareness of, and attitudes towards, stakeholder pensions - a flagship policy of the current government.