TCS wins pension auto-enrolment contract as bill passes

Tata Consultancy Service (TCS) has been named by the Department of Social Protection as the preferred bidder to manage the pension auto-enrolment system.

The win by the firm of the large and lucrative ten year contract follows a public procurement process

Last night the Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings System Bill 2024, which when enacted will give effect to the landmark new pension arrangement, cleared final hurdles in the Oireachtas.

It will now be sent to President Higgins to be signed into law.

"Auto-enrolment is a truly transformative policy that I am proud to deliver for Ireland," said Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys.

"It will make sure that hard working men and women across the country will be able to save for their future, with help from their employers and the State."

"I am delighted that this historic legislation has now passed both Houses of the Oireachtas and look forward to it being enacted shortly."

Under the scheme around 800,000 workers who are not already members of a pension will be automatically enrolled into one next year.

The aim of auto-enrolment is to boost the numbers of people with a pension and the level of their retirement savings.

Currently, Ireland is the only country in the OECD without such a system.

Welcoming the development, the Irish Congress of Trade Union general secretary Owen Reidy said it was a defining moment in bringing an end to Ireland's failed voluntary approach to pensions saving.

"Future generations of workers can now be spared from seeing their income and living standards plummet in retirement," he said.

"After decades of delay, it is vital to maintain momentum. The Minister must name the date for the first auto-enrolment pension contributions. This legislation cannot be left to sit on a shelf gathering dust" he said."

The scheme will be administered by the National Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Authority and Tata Consultancy Services has been chosen to provide this service.

For the past 13 years, TCS has acted as the pensions administration provider for the National Employment Savings Trust, the UK's equivalent to auto-enrolment, which has 13 million participants.

TCS has a presence in Ireland, in Letterkenny, where it has a global delivery centre that employs 1,400 people.