SINCE its introduction 2012, almost five million workers have begun saving for their retirement thanks to automatic enrolment.

But despite the huge numbers of people already saving as a result of the changes in workplace pension law, the roll out of automatic enrolment has only just begun - over a million small employers have still to become subject to their new duties.

All small and micro employers, including those who only employ one or two workers will have new duties.

Charles Counsell, executive director of automatic enrolment at The Pensions regulator is urging SMEs to find out when the law will affect them,

“It’s called automatic enrolment because it’s automatic for staff – workers don’t have to do anything to be enrolled into their employer’s pension scheme. But it’s not automatic for the employer. They need to take steps to make sure their eligible workers are enrolled.

“Failure to prepare in good time puts employers at risk of non-compliance and this can ultimately lead to financial penalties. Those employers that leave it late are the ones who most often find it difficult to be prepared on time.”

Employers have a date which is set in law and when their automatic enrolment duties come into effect. It’s called a staging date. All small and micro employers can check their staging date using a tool on The Pensions Regulator website. It takes a couple of minutes and involves entering your PAYE reference. www.tpr.gov.uk/actnow

The Pensions Regulator writes to all employers twelve months before their staging date and in the first three months of next year, more than one hundred thousand small employers who will stage in early 2016 will receive a letter from us.