For many employers, changes to the pension scheme are on the agenda - whether the proposals are to vary the terms of the existing scheme or to close the scheme altogether, and replace it with an alternative arrangement.
If managed badly, change can lead to an unhappy workforce or even to claims for breach of contract or unfair/constructive dismissal.
Where change is proposed, it is important for the employer to consider the contracts of employment of its staff, to see what the precise obligations are, as regards pension provision. Even where the contracts appear to permit change, there may still be issues to manage in practice.
How are the proposals, and the reasons behind them, going to be explained to the workforce, for example? Will the employees be expected to pay more? If so, are they actually going to agree to that in practice? Does the company have the appropriate signed authorities from its staff to allow it lawfully to deduct a higher rate of contribution?
Where no change is proposed, there are still the usual raft of regulatory matters to deal with. Do the company's arrangements satisfy the stakeholder pension requirements, for example?