Give employees what they want and benefits become a great retention tool
Recent research has shown what many probably suspected for a while — benefits programs are a very important consideration for employees when they are deciding where they want to work.
However, the survey of more than 2,000 Canadian employees conducted by Aon Consulting, also showed more than 30 per cent of Canadian workers are unhappy with their benefits.
Anytime dissatisfaction is in excess of 25 per cent, it’s a pretty good indication employers might be doing something wrong, said Marilynne Madigan of Aon Consulting.
Today’s employer of choice understands its workforce, figures out what they want and gives it to them, she said. And that goes for benefits. “They need to know their employees and be constantly taking their pulse.”
Depending where they are in terms of change, employers should conduct surveys every 12 to 24 months to figure out what employees are looking for, she added.
And they are likely to find that what their employees want most of all is flexibility. “Employees at different stages of life have different needs that they expect to be addressed in their benefits package,” states the report, Canada @ Work.
Aon’s survey revealed just 16 per cent of employees feel benefits are not a factor in keeping them in their job.
The same study found that flexibility was critical in generating employee satisfaction. Respondents were asked to rank six benefit programs; the most popular was flexible benefits. More employees want flexibility than stock purchase plans or cash bonuses based on individual performance or group performance.
Benefits mean different things to different people, said Madigan. Find out how they define benefits, test different programs to see if they meet those definitions and, most of all, don’t be afraid to give employees what they want even if those benefits haven’t been considered for coverage in the past — alternative medicines and naturopaths included.
“The key message is that benefits programs are important to all employees but the one-size-fits-all approach no longer works. Employees want to customize their programs,” she said. Employers can still contain costs but at the same time give employees greater say in how the money allocated for benefits is spent. There is no reason that an employee shouldn’t be able to spend some of the money in their benefits package on cosmetic dentistry if they want, she said.
Flexible spending accounts allow employees to take money that would have been provided for unwanted benefits and use them elsewhere. There is often a very big difference between what a married employee with children will want compared to a younger single employee.
“A single person is not going to want all their dollars tied up in long-term disability or life insurance,” she said. They may rather take that money and buy an extra pair of glasses or apply it to a concierge service, one of the hottest new benefits being offered these days.
Typically, younger employees are looking for more disposable income and are willing to give up some benefits offerings to get it. Conversely, older workers will forgo some take-home pay to have better benefits packages; 60 per cent of respondents over age 50 wanted more benefits, while 57 per cent of employees younger than age 29 wanted more pay and were willing to give up some benefits to get it.
The Aon study also concluded that since employees want different things at different stages in their lives, employers must be certain to maintain good communication channels. Sixty one per cent of employees were satisfied with benefits communication, but another 17 per cent were unhappy with their employers’ efforts to keep them informed.
However, the survey of more than 2,000 Canadian employees conducted by Aon Consulting, also showed more than 30 per cent of Canadian workers are unhappy with their benefits.
Anytime dissatisfaction is in excess of 25 per cent, it’s a pretty good indication employers might be doing something wrong, said Marilynne Madigan of Aon Consulting.
Today’s employer of choice understands its workforce, figures out what they want and gives it to them, she said. And that goes for benefits. “They need to know their employees and be constantly taking their pulse.”
Depending where they are in terms of change, employers should conduct surveys every 12 to 24 months to figure out what employees are looking for, she added.
And they are likely to find that what their employees want most of all is flexibility. “Employees at different stages of life have different needs that they expect to be addressed in their benefits package,” states the report, Canada @ Work.
Aon’s survey revealed just 16 per cent of employees feel benefits are not a factor in keeping them in their job.
The same study found that flexibility was critical in generating employee satisfaction. Respondents were asked to rank six benefit programs; the most popular was flexible benefits. More employees want flexibility than stock purchase plans or cash bonuses based on individual performance or group performance.
Benefits mean different things to different people, said Madigan. Find out how they define benefits, test different programs to see if they meet those definitions and, most of all, don’t be afraid to give employees what they want even if those benefits haven’t been considered for coverage in the past — alternative medicines and naturopaths included.
“The key message is that benefits programs are important to all employees but the one-size-fits-all approach no longer works. Employees want to customize their programs,” she said. Employers can still contain costs but at the same time give employees greater say in how the money allocated for benefits is spent. There is no reason that an employee shouldn’t be able to spend some of the money in their benefits package on cosmetic dentistry if they want, she said.
Flexible spending accounts allow employees to take money that would have been provided for unwanted benefits and use them elsewhere. There is often a very big difference between what a married employee with children will want compared to a younger single employee.
“A single person is not going to want all their dollars tied up in long-term disability or life insurance,” she said. They may rather take that money and buy an extra pair of glasses or apply it to a concierge service, one of the hottest new benefits being offered these days.
Typically, younger employees are looking for more disposable income and are willing to give up some benefits offerings to get it. Conversely, older workers will forgo some take-home pay to have better benefits packages; 60 per cent of respondents over age 50 wanted more benefits, while 57 per cent of employees younger than age 29 wanted more pay and were willing to give up some benefits to get it.
The Aon study also concluded that since employees want different things at different stages in their lives, employers must be certain to maintain good communication channels. Sixty one per cent of employees were satisfied with benefits communication, but another 17 per cent were unhappy with their employers’ efforts to keep them informed.
