Minister for Social Affairs Seamus Brennan has asked an expert group to deliver its recommendations on pension reform, including mandatory pensions, to his office by June.
The National Pensions Forum, which will meet on Friday in Dublin Castle, will consider the conclusions of the National Pensions Review and examine options for future pension policy reforms.
Speaking at the start of Pensions Action Week, Mr Brennan said hard and difficult decisions mat be required if a future pensioners are to avoid an impoverished old age.
"I believe it is now time to face up to the major pensions challenge we face and to take hard and difficult decisions," he said.
"In this regard, I have asked the Pensions Board to bring a speedy conclusion to their deliberations on the issue of mandatory or quasi-mandatory pensions. I expect to receive that report by June."
Mr Brennan unveiled a number of new measures today to increase pension coverage including a joint venture between the Pensions Board and the National Recruitment Federation to increase awareness among jobseekers.
But the Minister stressed that the system needed surgery rather than a band aid to address the challenges of an ageing population.
"It takes a cold look at some hard facts and figures to jolt many people into the realisation that the decisions they take now on pensions will be a major factor in determining how secure and rewarding their retirements will be," Mr Brennan said.
Despite increasingly shrill warnings in the media about a looming "pensions timebomb", it is estimated that 900,000 workers have no pension. Women are particularly vulnerable as a greater proportion of them work in part-time or service jobs that have no group pension schemes.
Demographics experts estimate that the number of people aged over 65 will more than treble from a current level of 464,000 to 1,500,000 by 2056. There are currently four workers contributing to the support of every pensioner. This will fall to 2.7 in 2026 and to less than 1.5 workers per pensioner in 50 years time.
The Pensions Board has also published A Guide to Equal Pension Treatment, which sets out rights and entitlements in the areas of equal treatment, discrimination and victimisation.