The government should amend the Pension Schemes Bill to introduce mandatory disclosure of employer pension contributions on all job adverts, the Social Market Foundation (SMF) has argued.

In its report, the SMF argued that the proposal could help raise public awareness of pensions and stimulate demand for better employer contributions, amid mounting concerns about widespread under-saving for retirement.

The think tank highlighted recent government figures that showed that 12.5 million working-age adults are not saving enough to meet even basic thresholds for adequate retirement income, while around four million are set to fall short of the minimum retirement standard.

However, SMF argued that policymakers have taken little action to address these concerns, suggesting that there is little political pressure to act, as voters rarely raise pensions with MPs, and most workers remain unaware of how little they are saving or receiving from employers.

Given this, it argued that the government should introduce requirements to make pension contributions visible in job ads to help workers treat pensions as a form of pay, and to encourage employers who offer better-than-minimum pension terms to highlight them as a recruitment asset.

It also argued that greater visibility of pension contributions could become a valuable new indicator for investors and policymakers concerned about corporate responsibility, providing businesses that offer generous pension terms an opportunity to improve their reputations through transparency.

SMF senior fellow and report author, James Kirkup, said: “Too many people are heading for retirement without enough savings – and most of them don’t even know it. That’s partly because we’ve allowed pensions to become invisible.

“Making employers state their pension contributions in job ads would help workers make better choices, create more pressure for higher contributions, and support fairer labour market competition."

“This proposal isn’t just good for workers’ futures – it’s good for the reputation of business. Being seen to treat your staff well, including through decent pension contributions, is something the public values and supports. That’s something all political parties and responsible employers should pay attention to.”

---