Germany's corporate pension (betriebliche Altersvorsorge, bAV) has a take-up gap as wide as its coverage gap. Our representative survey of 5,020 employees shows only 45.7% actively contribute — and reveals where employers lose productivity and talent because of it.
Take-up, availability, and awareness all fall short — and one in eight employees doesn't even know where they stand. Data from a YouGov survey of 5,020 employees.
of employees contribute to a bAV
of employees have an offer but don't use it
of employers offer no corporate pensions
of employees don't know whether corporate pensions are offered or if they are enrolled
Stressed employees report losing this much time weekly.
Stressed employees are over twice as likely to be job-hunting.
Pension contributors report less financial stress than non-contributors
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Financial wellbeing shows up on the bottom line twice — less lost productivity and stronger retention. The business case is a people case.
bAV is Germany's employer-provided pension layer — a company-sponsored retirement benefit sitting alongside the state pension and private provision. It's one of three pillars supporting retirement provision in Germany, alongside state and private pension arrangements. It isn't legally required — it has to be agreed through an employment contract or collective agreement, and employers can fund it directly, or employees can convert part of their salary into contributions (Entgeltumwandlung). BMASBMAS
Source: Bundesministerium für Arbeit und Soziales (BMAS) — bmas.de
The report is based on a YouGov panel survey of 5,020 employees across 13 industries, fielded November–December 2025, in collaboration with Financial Health Initiative e.V. It covers take-up, access, awareness, and the barriers behind non-contribution, broken down by company size, industry, and income band.
Source: HoFT / Financial Health Initiative e.V., Workplace Financial Wellbeing Study
Three overlapping gaps behind non-participation — take-up, availability, and awareness — plus the barriers driving them (competing savings options, information gaps, affordability, trust), coverage differences by company size and industry, and the link between pension contribution and financial stress.
The short-form version is free to read at hoft.berlin. To get it, fill in the form on the page below — it will direct you to the report.
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