Private sector workers need to save 10 times as much to get a public sector pension Private sector workers will need to contribute 10 times as much cash to get a public sector pension. Workers paying into a defined contribution (DC) pension scheme need to up their annual contributions by more than 10 times if they want the same retirement income as those on 'gold-plated' defined benefit (DB) scheme. According to calculations by the Pension Corporation, a worker aged 35 on a DC scheme would need to contribute 55pc of their salary to get the same retirement income as a worker paying just 5.1pc into a DB scheme. After thirty years of contributions at these rates, along with additional top-ups from their employers, both workers could expect to retire on a pension of half their salary. David Collinson, co-head of business origination, at Pension Corporation, said: "Leaving aside the far more generous employer contribution rates, the individual in the DB pension scheme benefits hugely from economies of scale in everything from pension administration to asset management fees."