PAW24: get on board!

If your employees were not already confused with pensions they sure will be over the next 12 months. 2025 promises to be big in pensions. Tax changes and the introduction of auto-enrolment will prompt your people to ask questions and wonder if they are getting the most of their money. The government will be on the airwaves pushing a retirement savings scheme when most of your employees would be better off in a typical occupational pension scheme.

If you work in HR and payroll you're in for a treat too. Deciding on the optimal approach to tackle auto-enrolment, devising a communications plan, and putting in place measures to comply with auto-enrolment will keep you busy…and possibly awake at night.

Pensions Awareness Week 2024 is a chance to get ahead on those plans. Kicking off on 23 September, PAW24 aims to help employers get the facts they need around pensions and benefits and provide guidance on how to communicate these to workers in an engaging way.

Employers large and small across Ireland have a chance to get involved. Here's how.

What's Pensions Awareness Week?

Pensions Awareness Week is an initiative to raise awareness in Ireland about retirement planning, and help people take charge of their long-term savings.

Starting their engines each September, the PAW team has covered the length and breadth of Ireland over the last six years. The PAW roadshow has hosted seminars and provided 1-2-1 sessions, offering advice to employers and their workforce to help them learn about pensions and fuel their savings journey.

Whether it's Ryan Tubridy and Gráinne Seoige interviewing industry experts, or Irish Times columnist Brian Mooney having a fireside chat on retirement planning, we have covered all the angles.

This year there's a spotlight on each pension member. PAW24 will provide every person the ability to benchmark their knowledge, help them to learn more, and offering actionable advice to improve their retirement plans.

Introducing our National Pensions Test

The heart of this year's initiative is the introduction of a National Pension Test. Just as you wouldn't ignore your NCT when it's due on your car, we're asking pension users not to neglect their NPT. After all, for most workers their pension is a far more valuable asset.

It's not just individuals whose pensions need some fine-tuning. Companies in Ireland are lagging their international peers when it comes to pensions and employee benefits so they too can sit a test.

For employers, there's a set of questions, powered by New Ireland, to assess their knowledge and seek advice on improving their pension and benefits proposition.

For pension savers, the National Pension Test will depend on your stage of life. If you've just taken the L-plates off your pension, your priorities are very different than if you're mid-career, and trying to keep your pension on-track, or if you're approaching retirement and wondering if you're well-prepared.

Three ways employers can get involved

If you're looking to engage your workforce with their pensions, then Pensions Awareness Week can help.

1. Take the Company Employee Benefits test. This will help you understand if you're in the fast lane, the slow or in the hard shoulder.
2. Encourage your employees to take the test. Exploring the PAW website, your team will find a rich source of free advice from across the pensions and investments industry. In addition to the NPT, they will find on-demand webinars on everything from starting a pension to wellness technology, and from psychological preparation for retirement to understanding risk. Consider putting on a training course for those that fail.
3. Book in a Pop-up NPT Test Centre: If you're looking for a deeper involvement, the PAW24 team is conducting workplace visits and can help to test your employees or conduct a workplace survey on benefits.

Pensions are going to be in the air over the next 12 months. In early 2025, every second billboard and radio ad is likely to be banging the drum about auto-enrolment. Smart employers are taking time now to get ahead of matters, and decide how they will handle auto-enrolment for their team. The PAW24 team is on hand to help.

It's time to get on board and take the test!

Ralph Benson

Moneycube.ie