Amid the Great Resignation, many employers are turning to their benefits packages to help make their workplace the most supportive and attractive environment that it can be.
From good old standbys like employer-sponsored health care to much more esoteric and creative solutions, a plan that offers employees a little something extra goes a long way toward retaining those most valuable resources—your people.
Health and Wellness
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, health care benefits were available to 71% of private industry workers and 54% of workers participated in the benefit, resulting in a 77% take-up rate, making health care one of the essential components of any benefits package.
And according to the SHRM Benchmarking Report, the median percentage of the premium employers pay for employee-only coverage is 80%.
So, obviously, while health care is essential, finding options that can support the employees while not breaking the bank is key.
One lever employers pull in this regard is through cost-sharing provisions.
“The funding of health care and employee benefits programs is challenging,” said Andrew Grove, executive vice president of sales and account management for SWBC Employee Benefits Consulting Group.
On the employer side, options range from traditional fully insured plans to types of self-funded plans.
But beyond that, employers can get creative and turn to things like consumer-driven health plans, health savings accounts and health reimbursement accounts. These options allow for plans with a higher deductible to reduce premiums, but reimburse employees at a pre-established threshold.
Taking it a step further, many employers are also looking to wellness programs.
Wellness programs are key because, while the workers tend to value them as a service, they have the added benefit of potentially reducing claims the employer must pay out over the longer term, provided the employees end up taking that wellness benefit to heart.
Employers increased the amount they spent on wellness programs by about 22% in 2021, according to SHRM knowledge advisor John Dooney.
Similarly, while many employers already had employee assistance programs on the books, the stress of the pandemic has increased the number of employees who are taking advantage of them.
Mental Health, Telehealth and Other Popular Benefits
Health coverage isn’t the only piece of a benefits package that matters.
Coverage for mental health, while already mandated by the Affordable Care Act, has also taken a more front-and-center role during the pandemic. Specifically, from an employer’s perspective, providing resources to workers who are trying to navigate the sometimes confusing and confounding mental health space for the first time has been a popular benefit.
During the early days of the pandemic lockdowns, federal and state regulators relaxed rules that previously had limited telehealth visits. With people out and about again, the popularity of seeing a health care provider online hasn’t gone away with mask mandates.
Many workers have found that seeing a health care provider through a video link offered benefits ranging from not needing to find child care, to not needing to find transportation if they didn’t own a vehicle, and even to being able to squeeze in a visit from their office during a lunch break. Employers that lean into telehealth could stand to reap some of the benefits from its growing popularity.
And not every benefit that pays dividends with employees needs to come with policy costs.
Many of the best practices emerging in benefits packages include flexible, and sometimes even unlimited, vacation days, personal days and paid time off.
Education reimbursement is popular, as are in-house programs to help employees pursue certifications and professional education.
And shifting to a visible in-house promotion and advancement strategy can give workers, and especially the younger ones who are just entering the workforce, an incentive to stick around for the long haul.
Many employers are even offering health insurance for employees’ pets, with many others recognizing the importance of having a pet during the pandemic by extending the welcome mat to furry friends in the office.
With student loan debt and assistance taking a more visible place in today’s political conversation, many employers are scoring points by helping to repay student loans.
Advocacy programs, especially in the area of financial well-being, also represent a growing trend.
And to help ease the transition back to work, some employers are even tossing in a stipend or allowance to let workers decorate their cubicle, making it feel more like home.
Looking Ahead
Having a world-class benefits package alone may not be enough. Navigating those offerings can be complex, and many industry analysts suggest that employers would do well to include some targeted communications and education campaigns to help teach employees the meaning and value of each of those benefits and how to use them most effectively.
Other employers are taking the wellness trend to another level. They either are partnering with nearby health facilities or inviting health care clinics into their facilities, so employees and their dependents have the easiest access possible to care.
In the big picture, keeping costs down is important, but so is offering benefits packages that will help employers stay competitive in today’s recruitment and retention environment. From dollars and cents, to simply thinking creatively and meeting employees where they are, today’s benefits package is going to continue to play a big role in any human resources strategy.
09 August 2022
Category
HR News Article