There are 2 main types of pension schemes:
Defined benefit – this is a pension based on your salary and how long you’ve worked for your employer.
How much you get depends on your pension scheme’s ‘defined benefit’ calculation and not on investment performance, share prices or on the contributions from you and your employer. The EAPF will promise to give you a guaranteed future income each year when you retire. Whilst your employer pays a generous contribution on your behalf, this doesn’t affect the amount you will receive, as it is a defined formula used to calculate your pension. The contributions are made in to the Fund to ensure you receive the guaranteed pension that was promised to you.
Defined contribution – this is a pension pot based on how much you’ve paid in contributions.
The money paid in by you or your employer is put into investments (such as shares) by the pension provider. This type of pension depends on how much has been paid in and how well your investments have done.