Half of workers ready to pay more into pensions if employers step up too

Half (50%) of permanent UK workers would pay more into their workplace pension if their employer paid a larger share, according to Scottish Widows’ latest Retirement Report.

The study revealed that if minimum contribution rates were to rise in the future, more than one in three (34%) permanent workers would be willing to contribute 6-8% of their salary and a fifth (20%) of permanent workers would be happy to contribute 8-10%.

Scottish Widows calculates that increasing total contribution rates from 8% to 12% on the first £30k of salaries could boost projected retirement pots by an average of £40,000.

Two-thirds (66%) of permanent workers are in favour of the government raising minimum employer pension contributions, compared to 42% when it comes to raising employee contributions. Workers in their 20s are most supportive of an employer increase (68%), but the appetite remains strong as workers get closer to retirement age, at 61% of over 50s.

Cost pressures remain a barrier

Despite strong backing for greater pension saving, Scottish Widows’ Workplace Report last year showed how cost pressures are putting pressure on reward and benefit packages.

Across all firm sizes, more than half (54%) are held back from increasing contributions by financial constraints including managing increased operating, staffing and utility costs.

Knowledge gap persists

The latest Retirement Report shows that understanding and engagement with retirement savings hasn’t caught up with 41% of workers having no idea how much they contribute each month.

A fifth (19%) of workers believe their employer contributes nothing at all, while three in 10 (30%) admit they don’t understand how pensions work. More than a third (36%) don’t know how much they should be saving and around a quarter (26%) are unsure of what to do with their money.

Low confidence and engagement are also a concern. Two in five (42%) lack the confidence to manage their retirement savings and just over a half (52%) have done little to no research into how much they will need for retirement.

Graeme Bold, Managing Director, Workplace and Intermediary Wealth at Scottish Widows, said “Automatic enrolment has been a real game changer for how Britain is building pension wealth, bringing millions of people into pensions who wouldn’t have saved otherwise. But the next phase is a challenge, as while half of workers are ready to put more aside if their employer steps up too, but businesses are already up against financial pressure across the board.

“The reality remains that too many people are still at risk of falling short in later life, with around a third facing a financial struggle in retirement. Most people save for retirement through their employer, making the workplace crucial to helping close the gap.

“Industry, government, employers and all of us need to be in the game here to help people build better financial futures. Increasing default contributions from employers and employees will be a big part of making this happen, but people must also understand what they have, if it’s enough and what steps they can take to plug any shortfall over time.”

Notes

Methodology

Retirement Report (2026)

The research was conducted online by YouGov across a total of 6,224 adults aged 18+, weighted to be representative of the UK population, and including a boost of 1,000 adults aged 18+ to better understand the retirement prospects of minority ethnic groups, also weighted to be representative of the UK minority ethnic population aged 18+. Fieldwork was carried out between 16 February 2026 and 24 February 2026.

The research cited in this release refers to a sub-sample of 2,329 UK adults who are employed on a permanent contract basis (weighted to a base of 2,336).

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