How can your employee benefits offering help you in the current ‘war for talent’?

Attracting and retaining employees is very hard at present.  When meeting with our clients, we are repeatedly being told that finding the right staff is incredibly difficult.

We have also found that the pandemic has made more people focus on their health and wellbeing.  Individuals want to have access to support, information and preventative treatment -not just for themselves, but often for their family too.

Employee benefits can help with both of the above.

Depending on the size of your business and industry, you may, or may not, have an existing employee benefit package.  Historically, small businesses have been put off due to a fear of cost or complexity, but it has never been easier and more cost effective to set up employee benefits.

When we talk about employee benefits, we mean:

• Life Cover
• Income Protection
• Private Medical Insurance
• Health Cash Plans
• Employee Assistance Programmes and more

Employee benefits can help you distinguish yourself from your competitors when there are marginal differences in salaries.  The perceived value of the employee benefit (Private Medical Insurance, for example) can often be much higher than the actual cost to the business.

For us, one of the biggest advantages of having an employee benefit package is that it supports your role as a caring employer.  It says to staff that you want to support their health and wellbeing and can indicate that you will consider their wellbeing in all decisions made.  This will hopefully make them want to work for you - or stay and continue working for you.

Individuals will enjoy talking about the employee benefits package offered by their employer when talking to peers and ex-colleagues.

Which employee benefit(s) to introduce will depend on your workforce.  Different benefits appeal to different individuals, therefore you need to take into consideration the demographic.  You should also consider the wider industry and what your local competitors are doing.

The difference between salary and employee benefits is that you can regularly communicate and shout about your employee benefit package, both internally and externally.

Over the last few years, employee benefits have evolved to provide a range of additional support services (in addition to the core cover at no extra cost), which include:

• 24/7 GP service to staff and their family
• Mental Health support
• Financial and legal support
• Annual Health Assessments

These provide employers with further benefits to help them attract and retain key employees.

For more information please visit https://www.sgwealthmanagement.co.uk/business-clients/employee-benefits

Want to know more? Click here to get in touch