Should employees be represented on boards of trustees?

The law requires at least one third of the trustees of any scheme to be member-nominated trustees. (Some public sector schemes are not covered by this rule.)

Some schemes do better than this, and some have 50:50 member/employer representation with an independent Chair.

Different methods are used for electing the member trustees as what makes sense in a smaller scheme with only one workplace might not work for a large company based on a number of sites. Indirect elections are sometimes used.

While member trustees should speak up for members' interests they should not be seen as direct delegates, as they have distinct legal duties as trustees.

You can download the Pension Service guide to occupational pensions.