What are the Most In-Demand Employee Benefits?

Modern employers today have a good understanding of why it’s important to provide their employees with a range of different benefits, such as a good employee assistance program. Today, the world of work has changed a lot and many employees expect to not only be paid a salary from their job but also enjoy some additional perks and benefits from the companies that they work for. In most cases, employers provide benefits in order to more easily attract the top talent to come and work for the company. When an employer offers some of the most in-demand benefits, they are more likely to get a higher number of interested applicants who are not only interested in the role and the brand but also the benefits and extras that it provides. 

If you want to attract the top talent to come and work for your business, then you need to consider what benefits and extras you can offer in order to achieve this. Some of the most in-demand benefits that employees want today include:

Health Insurance

Health insurance has quickly become one of the most in-demand benefits that you can offer to your employees today. Many employees actively seek out employment where they will be provided with health insurance, as they want this additional peace of mind and the opportunity to save money when it comes to getting the health and medical care that they need. Offering health insurance benefits is not only a sure way to attract more people to apply to work for your company, but it can also help with employee retention as employees who have this benefit from their workplace are more likely to stick around. 

Supplemental Health Benefits

Along with offering health insurance cover, you may also want to consider offering supplemental health benefits to your employees. A supplemental benefits solution can be a good way to offer additional health benefits to your employees such as discounted gym memberships or a way to save money on prescriptions and other health and medical purchases. One of the best things about supplemental health benefits is that they can be used to provide a lot of value to employees at little to no cost to the employer. Employees may be able to pay a small monthly fee that is deducted from their wages automatically in order to access these benefits.  

Retirement Plans

With an increasing number of people starting earlier than ever when it comes to planning their retirement, it’s no surprise that retirement plans are one of the most in-demand employment benefits that you can offer. Today, saving and investing for retirement is no easy task with the rising cost of living leaving many people in a position where they need to start thinking about saving for retirement in their twenties. For this reason, an employer who provides some assistance with saving for retirement will usually be more favored by employees compared to those who do not. Offering a retirement plan such as a 401(k) that includes employer contributions to help boost savings is a great option to consider. 

Employee Assistance Program

Offering an employee assistance program is a great way to not only provide an additional benefit to your employees but to also give them somewhere they can go for help with anything in their lives. An EAP is a work-based intervention program that is designed to be there for employees to use if they are struggling or require support with personal problems that might interfere with their work. Employees can use an EAP for support with family and marriage issues, mental health illnesses, addiction, and more. This is also a benefit that has a lot of advantages for employers, too, since when employees are dealing with personal problems that they are not able to get support for, this can spill over into their professional life and cause further problems in the workplace. 

Educational Benefits

Offering education benefits to your employees is also definitely one worth considering when you are an employer. With the cost of getting an education on the rise, employers who are willing to cover all or part of the cost of getting a degree or industry qualification are always in high demand. Employees can benefit from this by getting the qualification that they want or need to progress in their career, while for employers, it means that you are provided with a more highly educated, knowledgeable and skillful workforce. In many cases, tax breaks are available to employers who contribute towards education costs for employees, and you may be able to write off the cost of tuition fees for employees as a training expense. 

Flexible Spending Account

Also known as a flexible spending arrangement, a flexible spending account is provided to employees allowing them to put money into it for certain out-of-pocket healthcare costs that will not be included in their healthcare coverage. There are many perks of this type of account as employees do not need to pay tax on any money that is deposited into it, allowing them to save more towards out-of-pocket healthcare expenses. It is also possible for employers to choose to make additional contributions to employee accounts. 

Lifestyle Benefits

Along with some of the main and most in-demand benefits for employees today, employers can also offer a range of lifestyle benefits that are designed to help employees save money and make their lives easier. For example, this could include being able to access discounts at local businesses whether that means money off groceries, eating out, or a gym membership. Vehicles are another popular lifestyle benefit that many employees will go for. For example, you might want to partner with a local car sales company to allow your employees to access cheaper vehicle leasing or finance deals. You could also choose to go the route of offering allowances for these lifestyle benefits, as this guide to employee stipends explains.

When hiring employees today, offering a great employee assistance program will help you stand out from the crowd and make a better impression on the top talent in your area. With competition fiercer than ever when it comes to employment, offering some of the most in-demand benefits will help you streamline the hiring process.