Closed petition Change the pension auto enrolment criteria for under-22s and low paid workers

Closed on 24 September 2021

Lower the pension auto enrolment age from 22 to 18, and reduce the current £10,000 minimum annual salary threshold for auto enrolment. This would particularly benefit apprentices, and other young, low paid workers.

Only workers earning over £10,000 – and aged between 22 and State Pension age – must be automatically enrolled into a workplace pension by their employer. Therefore, thousands of apprentices aged under 22 are missing out on saving this extra bit of money, unless they opt in. Also women are more likely to be earning less than the £10,000 threshold. It seems ludicrous that apprentices are missing out on this saving which could be the difference between them eating or going hungry upon retiring.