PPK – What has been successful, what will the last simple implementation of the program look like?

The beginnings of the PPK in Poland are a big unknown, the action in the dark.
What is the situation after 2 years of the Act on Employee Capital Plans?
What can we expect in the coming years?

To this day, the program has been implemented at three stages of the assumed schedule. The first routes were paved by the largest companies employing 250 employees and up. Medium and small organizations completed the process in the fall of last year. The pandemic and the changes introduced in connection with it resulted in convergence of these two stages.

2021 is the last and the longest straight. What can we expect when implementing the 4th tranche of the PPK? What reflections come from the implementations so far and what conclusions for the future? Interview with Agnieszka Jakuczek, president of EOFWCA.pl. Partner supporting the company in the process of implementing employee capital plans.

The Act on Employee Capital Plans has been in force since January 1, 2019 and imposes an obligation on subsequent groups of employers to implement the program at half-yearly intervals. However, the pandemic slightly disturbed this order, which was why the term was postponed for the second group of employing people. 

The provisions of the Act provided for the introduction of the PPK.

The largest companies went first and they paved the way of processes, procedures and largely emphasized the needs of educating the public in a broader scope.
In retrospect, we know that its course was characterized by high uncertainty, many issues raised doubts, required legislative clarification. & nbsp; HR and payroll systems have not been properly prepared and those on the part of financial institutions – yet many issues required polishing. Moreover, the amendment to the act just before the entry into force of the PPK became a difficulty. The procedures and obligations faced by the organizations after the introduction of the PPK were questioned. As well as the way of communicating with employees, their education.

At the end of 2020, we also completed the implementation of the PPK in groups II and III. As a consequence of the anti-crisis shield records & nbsp; The deadline for signing the management contract and running the PPK set for companies employing at least 50 people have been extended to October 27, 2020. and coincided with the date of the third stage.

We know from the autopsy that most entrepreneurs made efforts in a timely manner related to the selection of the appropriate entity to manage the PPK, had appropriate talks with employees, the appropriate documents were prepared. However, due to the possibility of deferring the necessary financial obligations, these activities were postponed. The pandemic significantly upset the stability of the economy, the situation on the markets was and is still uncertain, most of the business strategies needed reorganization. Many companies have lost their financial liquidity. Thus, the financial situation of employers was the main factor of the implementation of the PPK.

Stage II and III are implementations carried out mainly online. Of course, the cause was a pandemic. Quite differently from stage I, where the majority of the meetings were held stationary. Personally, I believe that virtual meetings had a significant impact on less participation. In the last year, we have entered the digital world significantly, but we, Poles, are very relational. When making a decision, we like to talk to the other person, be able to ask directly questions, discuss behind the scenes.

Responsible for the implementation of PPK in many companies, I admit that digitization allowed to efficiently implement the program in combined groups II and III. It would be difficult to imagine stationary implementations on such a scale. Each party had more knowledge about PPK, systems, needs and expectations. Many doubts, technical nuances, etc. have been worked in the first tranche. In the following ones, campaigns, the press, and the readiness of HR and payroll systems helped. The uncertainty, the situation and nbsp; with OFE, lack of confidence in the state and the financial market. At the same time, I perceive the latter factor as a result of ignorance. It is worth considering where and when we could learn about financial markets? This is a great topic for the next discussion.
However, it is worth bearing in mind that the PPK can be an educational element. We absolutely best learn from our own means. I had the opportunity to observe this phenomenon at meetings where there were people who worked abroad. with such solutions. They were the best PPK ambassadors in the field. And that’s what we need, time to observe. I believe that in the near future, since we have learned to put it on a car or a TV set, we will also learn to save to protect our distant needs. Because PPK is not only retirement!

It is easy to say that the companies from the second tranche had more time to implement. Virtually more than half a year. However, you have to bear in mind that & nbsp; it was a completely different six months than any other one so far. The success of the PPK implementation is mainly the result of the employer’s attitude. And what could he have at that time? Spring is the first and total Lock Down. Market confusion, reorganization of strategy, company financing and questions What DALE? Because we had no grounds to predict the further development of the action. PPK topic? was not a priority in this situation. Some companies have chosen a supplier. However, summer is holidays, so organizing meetings with employees was ineffective. Thus, most of the activities moved to the fall.

From the beginning, I said, even in the days before & nbsp; a pandemic that the assumptions of participation were too optimistic. The pandemic just fueled it. I omit the aforementioned OFE, lack of trust, etc. The Polish mentality is of key importance. History knows many situations when we got into the proverbial “butt”. Therefore, I am not surprised that & nbsp; Consciously, our brain is focused on protecting this part of the body. We like to look at, look at, observe, talk and criticize. Once we see everything from all sides and see that it works, we will make a decision on YES. And it takes time.

What are the effects of implementations that are behind us?

by Summary PFR As a result of the implementation of PPK in small, large and medium-sized companies, participation at the level of 30.4% of employees of these companies. So the program was convinced by & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; 1.7 million Poles. Most in companies from the financial industry and with foreign capital. The legislator’s assumptions provided for 75%. The assumptions of the institutions providing the PPK – assumed a minimum of 60%.
It is worth noting that 32,000 companies, previously covered by the obligation of the Act, have not effectively implemented the program. These are mainly entities employing 20 to 49 employees. This translates into the overall performance of the program. The employment volume of companies from the first three stages is 7.4 million. Meanwhile, in those with properly implemented PKK 5.553 million.

In addition to the PPK, Poles also save on:
IKZE – 230 thousand,
IKE – over 330 thousand
PPE – over 330 thousand

The legislator’s high hope is placed on the home straight. Implementation in companies employing less than 20 employees and units of the public finance sector may, according to The rulers bring an additional 2 million interested, and even more. At the beginning of the year, the last and largest stage of the PPK started. There are the most potential participants here. Thus, it is the best chance to increase the assets accumulated in the PPK.
At the same time, the shift by six months of the second stage shortened the savings period. The assumptions adopted for 2020 amount to PLN 10 billion at the end of the year. Meanwhile, in 12 months the accumulated assets increased from PLN 86 million to PLN 2.8 billion. Thus, the drafters of the 2020 goal are expected to meet in 2021.

Assumptions, effects and conclusions

Kill the giraffe and eat it, or buy a goat and let it give us milk for years. A statement vividly presenting the perspective of the goal: short or long-term. & nbsp; I dare say that the strategy of implementing the PPK in Poland should be based on goat. Unfortunately, the target was chosen as a giraffe. Here and now, plans, results, pressure, pressure.

I am pleased with the current publications proving the change of the position of the rulers and adopting the goat’s strategy. Better late than never.

It is worth considering why we are not implementing the PPK calmly? & nbsp; they are not according to me economic assumptions. The reason is at the root of our nature, the affliction of doing everything at the last minute. It does not matter that we have 3 months for the project. We’ll put it off for the last month anyway. Why is this happening? A friend of a different nationality made it clear to me. I am quoting; “Your eternal Ramadan. If it’s not a religious holiday, it’s a public holiday, it’s a holiday, and it’s winter holidays. There is always no one to make a decision, take the right actions. Everything moves in time.” After the analysis, I agreed with my colleague. In fact, we work 4-5 months the most efficiently throughout the year. March, from mid-May to the end of June and from September to mid-November. And this is how we have worked on the PPK so far.

If we are aware of our national specificity, we will start to wonder if the assumptions for the course of the last tranche are correct.

Finally, the question is whether the goal of introducing the PPK will be achieved? By gaining the ability to save for a bicycle, TV or car, will we start saving for this distant future or for a rainy day? Will we learn to pay for ourselves first?

At the moment, PFR presents new assumptions for the implementation process, typical of a goat scheme. Assuming that by the end of 2025 we will achieve participation at the level of 40 – 50% and in the long term 50 – 75%, which will give us 6 – 8 million employees.
From today’s perspective, we can conclude that the PPK system affects the financial condition of employers and employees. For some, this means more costs, for others it means lower wages they receive every month. 
The changes caused by the pandemic had a negative impact on the process in terms of overall terms. However, in the perspective of the increase in employee participation, we notice a favorable factor. The time of uncertainty that put us all to the test and forced us to reflect on the future and its safety changes the attitude of Poles to saving. Thus, there is a high probability that in the last stage the participation of the participants will be higher, while in stages I, II and III there will be a gradual increase.
I believe that education and program positioning in the long-term horizon will bring positive results. More and more of us will gain confidence and say yes. For which I keep my fingers crossed.

Agnieszka Jakuczek,
President of the Management Board of eOFWCA.pl
A supporter of PPK and all forms of saving