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A Pensions and Benefits Model for the 21st Century 29 June 1998 Leading employers' forum advocates radical new approach to pay and rewards The Employers Forum on Age (EFA), in association with Towers Perrin, today (Monday 29 June) unveils a model for the pensions and benefits scheme of the future. Employers believe it has the potential to revolutionise the world of work and the way we provide for our needs throughout working life and into old age. The model, which the EFA calls 'FlexPlan', is released to coincide with the EFA's second annual conference. It provides a blueprint for the future which enables employers to reward their staff on the basis of their contribution to the business rather than just time served. Crucially, it also delivers benefits to employees at all stages of their working life - from trainee, to working parent, to those approaching retirement. 'Not only is the FlexPlan a pensions and benefits package that truly reflects the changes in the modern workplace, it is exactly what employers need to encourage a mixed-age workforce,' says Howard Davies, Chairman of the EFA and head of one of the first organisations to implement a model FlexPlan in the UK, the Financial Services Authority. A FlexPlan operates by offering the individual employee a high degree of flexibility around the three main components that make up their rewards – base pay, benefits allowance and pensions contribution. Instead of being given a standard company package, within guidelines, an employee can develop a tailor-made package relevant to their current stage of life and needs. Some of the choices available include pump priming your pension by diverting extra cash into a defined contribution scheme, buying into childcare support, increasing holiday allowance, taking out medical and dental insurance - or even forgoing all of the additional benefits for extra cash. Helen Garner, campaign director of the Employers Forum on Age, explains why the FlexPlan model offers business a way to compete, as demographic changes revolutionise the make-up of Britain's workforce: 'A FlexPlan offers employers the chance to make a fundamental shift towards encouraging a mixed-age workforce and ensure their competitiveness. As the changing demographics of the workplace really begin to bite we are encouraging employers to take on all the innovative practices they can to help them stay ahead.' Predicted business benefits of a FlexPlan include:
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