Auto-Enrolment

GOV.UK guidance states the underlying duty as an obligation on the employer, not a choice for the worker to opt into: 'All employers must provide a workplace pension scheme. This is called ‘automatic enrolment’.' The employer, not the employee, has to take the first step.

Eligibility is defined by a specific set of conditions rather than applying to every worker automatically. The guidance explains that 'Your employer must automatically enrol you into a pension scheme and make contributions to your pension if all of the following apply': the worker must be classed as a 'worker', they must be 'aged between 22 and State Pension age', they must 'earn at least £10,000 per year', and they must ordinarily work in the UK. A worker who does not meet all of these conditions may still be able to opt in voluntarily, but the automatic duty on the employer only applies where every condition is satisfied.