Almost a million hospitality staff are among workers at risk of a retirement in poverty, a study of blackspots in the government’s flagship pensions policy has shown.

According to the TUC, as many as six in 10 workers in low-paid sectors such as retail and agriculture are not enrolled in a pension. They slip through the net of the government’s pensions auto-enrolment system as they earn less than the £10,000 minimum level at which employers are forced to set them up with a savings plan.

Launched five years ago in one of the biggest shakeups for pensions in recent memory, auto-enrolment was introduced by the government to boost levels of saving for retirement. More than 8m employees have signed up for a workplace pension since, according to official figures.

But workers in low-paid sectors appear not to be receiving the same level of contributions from their employers as those at the top. As many as nine out of 10 savers in the wholesale and retail industries received less than 8% of salary from their employer. In high-paid sectors such as financial services, the vast majority of savers received more than this amount.

The TUC general secretary, Frances O’Grady, said: “Millions remain at risk of poverty in retirement because they are saving nothing, or very little, in a pension scheme. We urgently need the government to help more low-paid workers join schemes. And ministers must set out a plan for increasing contributions from employers.”

The industries with the lowest level of pension cover are agriculture, forestry and fishing, hospitality, construction, arts and entertainment, and other services such as hairdressing and beauty. The TUC said nearly 9m workers in total were unable to save into a pension scheme due to low pay.

A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions said: “More than 8.5 million people are now enrolled into a workplace pension, thanks to the introduction of automatic enrolment.

“But we know there is more to do, which is why our review is looking at who is eligible and the evidence around future contribution increases, to ensure as many people as possible are saving towards their retirement.”