First-time poster here. I'm an Aussie expat and have now been working in the UK for a solid 3.5 years for a big consulting firm. I'm on an ICT visa that was initially supposed to run for the 2 years but I've since extended for the full 5 year term.
I have been back and forth with my employer about being eligible to receive the matching contributions offered to my peers but they have been reluctant to offer it and they refer to my ICT contract which states that I'm not eligible to receiving those benefits. When I've asked for the reason, I have been told every reason in the book; tax and compliance reasons, legal reasons etc.
I have a couple of work peers on Tier 2 General Visa and they're apparently eligible to receive the benefits.
I've been persistent for the last 2.5 years and the case is now being escalated through HR. Personally, I think it's discriminatory behaviour as they claim we are all compensated the same as our direct peers at the same level (rank and grade).
I did some further reading and found that about a couple of years ago, automatic enrollment had become compulsory here in the UK. Looking at the criteria on the gov.uk site (https://www.gov.uk/workplace-pensions/j ... ce-pension):
Your employer must automatically enrol you into a pension scheme and make contributions to your pension if all of the following apply:
- you’re classed as a ‘worker’ yes
- you’re aged between 22 and State Pension age yes
- you earn at least £10,000 per year yes
- you usually (‘ordinarily’) work in the UK (read the detailed guidance if you’re not sure)
When your employer does not have to automatically enrol you yes - I looked into this definition further and there is no mention of ICT. That said, I work full-time >250 days in the UK every year
Your employer usually does not have to automatically enrol you if you do not meet the previous criteria or if any of the following apply:
- you’ve already given notice to your employer that you’re leaving your job, or they’ve given you notice no
- you have evidence of your lifetime allowance protection (for example, a certificate from HMRC) no - don't know what this is
- you’ve already taken a pension that meets the automatic enrolment rules and your employer arranged it no
- you get a one-off payment from a workplace pension scheme that’s closed (a ‘winding up lump sum’), and then leave and rejoin the same job within 12 months of getting the payment not that I'm aware of and nothing stated of the kind in my contract
- more than 12 months before your staging date, you left (‘opted out’) of a pension arranged through your employer no - contract says that I will not be eligible for the co-contribution benefits which I have been disputing as being unfair and inequitable in terms of pay
- you’re from another EU member state and are in a EU cross-border pension scheme no - from Australia
- you’re in a limited liability partnership no
- you’re a director without an employment contract and employ at least one other person in your company no
My question is - What are my rights here with regards to pension enrollment? Is there a clause / trick that I've missed? Otherwise, taking into consideration the above, has my employer broken the rules without realising it?
Should I be seeking independent advice?
