Guest post by Daniel Tannenbaum
The past year and the pandemic have had a tremendous impact on businesses in many different ways. While many would, understandably, consider the way in which a company has adapted its operations – remote working, social distancing, face masks and hand-sanitising methods – the relationship with has also an important area.
Research recently released by Achievers suggests that a third of working Brits are feeling less connected to their company’s workplace culture, as well as their colleagues, during this turbulent period.
The pandemic has caused a huge upheaval in the jobs market, employers now looking at how to keep top talent, keep employees engaged and strengthen their company culture – much of which can be supported by the use of employee benefits.
Offering perks has been known to benefit not just the employee but also the employer. Employee benefits can not only help to improve the mental and physical wellbeing of staff, but also the productivity and engagement they put into their work.
Employee benefits can therefore be an investment all businesses should consider, supporting staff members and helping to optimise their overall employeee wellbeing to encourage happier, healthier, and more productive workers.
These benefits can produce a classic win-win situation, strengthening the relationship between employees and their employers, which can also help to retain staff while attracting top talent.
Additionally, with certain types of benefits such as business health insurance, employers can also help to reduce the amount of workplace absences and sick leave.
Some of the most popular benefits currently include health insurance plans for employees from Equipsme from £7.99 per month, life insurance plans for employees from YuLife from £4.99 per month and access to employee discounts and perks from Perkbox from £4 per month.
Other Types of Employee Benefits
There’s a vast range of benefits out there for companies to explore, including offering travel allowance, unlimited holiday, free lunches and dog-friendly offices.
With pandemic, many people have started to grow more concerned about their health, with the isolation of lockdowns and social distancing also taking a toll on mental wellbeing. Therefore, potentially the most apt employee benefits to focus on involve healthcare perks, including wellbeing apps, private healthcare and access to counselling.
While 2020 closes, the need to keep top talent connected and feeling supported by their company still remains, so 2021 could be a big year in driving health-focused employee benefits. Only time will tell the true extent of investment in this.