More businesses than ever are planning and offering employee benefits – rightly so, because employees worldwide expect them. However, if you’re a startup or small business with a limited budget, you may wonder whether benefits packages are worth the additional cost. Simply put, yes!
Employee benefits matter. Good benefits help you attract and retain the best talent, lead to more productive and happier workers, and can help scale your business. This article will explore the reasons why employers should offer employee benefits.
What Are Employee Benefits, and Why Are They Crucial?
Also called fringe benefits or perks, employee benefits are offered to workers beyond wages and salaries. These benefits may include medical insurance, overtime, profit sharing, vacations, retirement benefits, and more.
In today’s hiring market, generous employee benefits are crucial for hiring new employees and keeping the existing ones. According to one report, over 60% of employees say perks and benefits play a major role in deciding whether to accept a job offer. Moreover, 80% of workers would choose employee benefits over salary bumps.
Top 4 Reasons Businesses Should Consider Employee Benefits
Listed below are the top four reasons why you must offer employee benefits as an employer:
1. Job Satisfaction
Believe it or not, a good employee benefits package demonstrates that the company or brand cares about employees. Benefits like workplace perks, tuition reimbursement, paid time off (PTO), and wellness programs can make your employees feel appreciated and valued.
- Employees will remain motivated, enthusiastic, and loyal to the company when you provide a benefits package.
- According to one report, 71% of employees who are satisfied with employee benefits are loyal to their companies.
More than 72% of employees say that customized benefits improve their loyalty. Additionally, fringe benefits are crucial for workplace morale (employee morale) because positive and happy teams are more collaborative and productive. Moreover, job satisfaction due to employee benefits can help reduce employee turnover, leading to more stable and stronger dynamics within the department.
2. Improved Recruiting
Companies live or die by the workforce quality they keep. By offering employee benefits, you can attract and recruit the right talent. Many companies think big paychecks attract employees. While large paychecks are important, they’re not the only deciding factors when employees join organizations – benefits play an equal role.
According to one survey, over 55% of employees say they’re more likely to accept jobs with lower paychecks if they offer better employee benefits. In addition, your company will attract more employees if you offer flextime, health and well-being benefits. Overall, if you wish to recruit the best workforce – motivated, talented employees who can help scale your business – make sure to provide good employee benefits other than salary.
3. Enhanced Focus & Productivity
Fringe benefits can help improve employee productivity and focus. Employee benefits packages that offer perks like PTO, disability insurance, and health insurance can prevent workers from worrying about medical expenses, child care, and finances.
According to one survey, 73% of workers report that their financial worries adversely affect their productivity. In addition, over 50% of working parents say they left their jobs because of poor childcare solutions.
You can provide benefits packages to help ease their stress. If your employees are confident about their “personal” matters, they can focus more on their roles and tasks and become productive.
51% of employees say they can focus better on their work with added employee benefits.
4. Increased Attendance
Your employees will come to work more if they have employee benefits. Workplace absenteeism is rampant. Although there can be several reasons, three main ones include finances, health issues, and family commitment.
Employees may have to run their financial errands. By providing employee benefits, you can reduce the financial errands workers have to perform. Over 40% of employees say fringe benefits and perks impact their workplace absenteeism due to financial errands.
In addition, 74% of employees report they couldn’t make it to their office because of family commitments. Employee benefits like flextime (flexible work arrangements) can help reduce work absences for family issues.
Moreover, fringe benefits also help avoid absenteeism due to health issues. Motivated and satisfied employees are more likely to go to healthcare providers and take necessary medical procedures when sick or having health issues – just to return to work early.
Which Employee Benefits Are Most Valued By Employees?
Often, small businesses and new startups can’t provide the comprehensive employee benefits that large corporations can. To overcome this dilemma, they have to be more strategic and choose only those fringe benefits that are crucial to their existing workforce and new employees they want to hire.
Here are a few most sought-after benefits that employees seek from employers:
Better dental, vision, and health insurance- More flexible hours and vacation time
- Work-from-home options
- Student loan and tuition assistance
- Unlimited vacations
- Free day-care and gym services
- Paternity/paid maternity leave
- Free fitness/yoga classes
- Team bonding events
- Weekly team dinners
Consult Our Expert Agents to Choose the Right Employee Benefit Program
Employee benefits can help keep your workers happy, motivated and loyal, leading to smooth day-to-day business operations and increased growth. Looking for effective employee benefits programs? Choose JMG Insurance Corp.
We’re a go-to insurance company providing successful insurance solutions to businesses of all sizes and shapes. No matter your business, we can customize a package that best suits your business needs and make employees happy without breaking the bank. For more information, visit the website or contact us directly!
