The regulator classes employers as having awareness of the workplace pension reforms if they have sufficient knowledge to know what the main requirements and implications are for them when prompted, namely they know that:
• they will have to automatically enrol UK workers
• they will have to provide a pension scheme for automatic enrolment and
• they will have to contribute to their workers’ pensions.
The regulator classes employers as understanding how to discharge their duties if they know enough about their legal requirement to proceed to plan for, and take action towards, compliance. Specifically, understanding is defined as an employer knowing all of the three elements of the awareness definition (as set above) plus knowing two additional features when prompted:
• That they will have to complete a declaration of compliance (registration) with the appropriate government body to confirm they have met their duties; and
• That they will need to communicate to UK workers on an individual basis.
There are a number of different measures to indicate knowledge of certain elements of automatic enrolment, as well as attitude and intentions. These are detailed in this report. The survey wave comprised 808 interviews conducted in May and June 2014, among smaller medium employers (with between 50 and 60 workers)2, small employers (with between five and 49 workers) and micro employers (with between one and four workers).
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