Your total employee compensation — both salary and benefits — is one of the most important decisions your business will ever make. And like any other business decision, it’s a balancing act.
You need a compensation package that will convince valuable candidates to choose you over the competition, but you still need to make sure it fits into your budget.
Want to make sure you’re staying competitive in the tight labor market? Keep an eye out for these emerging trends in the world of employee benefits and compensation.
Support for Employee Financial Health
As the cost of living rises, debt loads increase, and pre-pandemic savings become depleted, more employees are experiencing financial stress. As a result, employers are beginning to add benefits that help workers move toward better financial wellness:
- Emergency savings plans (ESAs)
- Student loan repayment assistance
- Budgeting help
- Debt repayment tools
Of course, many employers worry that financial benefits will impact their bottom lines. Fortunately, in many cases, these benefits are incredibly cost-effective.
The Return of Pensions
You might think that pensions are a thing of the past. However, in an effort to attract talent and help employees find security in retirement, more employers are moving toward “defined benefit” plans like the traditional pension.
This might sound like it would be more expensive than today’s typical 401(k) matching. However, thanks in part to interest rate hikes, many employers are finding that returning to pensions saves them money. If you explore pensions as an employee benefits option, you might find that bringing them back is a win-win.
A Focus on Mental Health
The focus on mental health in the workplace is hardly new. However, with employee burnout on the rise, more organizations are looking for ways to support mental wellness. You might already be seeing an increase in benefit offerings like these:
- Health plans with comprehensive mental health coverage
- Mental health days
- Subscriptions to mental health apps
- Flexible work hours
- Stress management tools
When choosing a new employer or evaluating whether they want to stay with a current employer, many employees will prioritize companies with a genuine concern for their well-being. Even adding a few mental-health-centric offerings can pay off when it comes to talent.
Pay That Keeps Up With Inflation
In the past few years, there have been some of the highest salary raises in recent memory. Unfortunately, thanks to high inflation and continually rising costs of living, those raises haven’t made much of a difference when it comes to quality of life. As a result, many businesses are upping the ante when it comes to employee compensation.
For some, pay increases have started to outstrip inflation. And because so many employees face financial insecurity, increasing employee compensation is an almost guaranteed way to set yourself apart from competitors when attracting talent.
Consideration for Rising Healthcare Costs
Each year, the cost of quality healthcare increases. However, new technologies and new medications — like wildly popular and sometimes abused GLP-1 drugs — mean that costs have spiked more than ever in the past few years.
These higher costs, of course, pose a challenge to employers. Given the focus on improving employee compensation and offering a wider array of benefits, most employers are reluctant to pass those costs on to employees through higher premiums.
With a careful benefits strategy, you can closely examine your healthcare offerings and control prices while still delivering maximum value to employees.
Stand Out From the Crowd With the Right Employee Benefits
Competition for talented employees has never been more intense. However, when you offer the right employee benefits, you’ll stand out in the employment landscape.
At Benefits Advisory Group, we’re here to help your business achieve its goals for employee retention and growth by developing robust benefits offerings. When you work with us, we take the time to get to know you before strategically developing a custom benefits plan.
Our commitment doesn’t end there — we also support you through implementation and offer ongoing support. Are you ready to build a stronger company? Get in touch today to see how we can help!