Alight, a leading cloud-based human capital technology and services provider, workplace benefits play an important role in attracting, engaging and retaining talent – yet employees do not always see value in their existing benefits, while employers generally overestimate them.
Alight’s new Workplace Benefits in a Changing World 2023 report surveyed 1,400 employees and 420 mid-sized to large employers across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom to understand the differences between employers’ and employees’ priorities and needs regarding benefits. According to the findings, more than half (58%) of companies believe they understand what benefits their employees want, whereas only 37% of employees say their employer’s benefit offerings meet their needs.
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Additionally, more than half (61%) of employers insist their benefits go beyond local requirements, while just over a third (34%) of employees believe their companies offer substantial benefits beyond those required by local legislation.
A gap in communications and understanding could be one factor influencing the disconnect between employers and employees. For example, 61% of employers believe their employees understand the available benefits “very well” and 65% believe they have communicated them clearly to employees, yet less than half of employees (48%) agree with this sentiment. The study also found that omnichannel communication solutions, such as those using SMS, apps, shared hubs, as well as automated tools like chatbots, can be an effective way to create more transparency between the employee and employer. Almost half (45%) of employees also believe that individual advice sessions based on personal needs is another method that could improve benefit communications.
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“Organisations need to take a proactive approach to workplace benefits to bridge the gap between employers and employees. Every employee has unique needs, values and interests, and today’s workplace is constantly changing. It is crucial for employers to identify ways to innovate and future-proof benefits strategies and provide employees with an integrated, personalised and technology-driven experience. This will help to improve the awareness and utilisation of benefit programmes, drive greater returns on investment for employers, enhance the overall employee wellbeing, and ultimately help to attract and retain talents now and in the future,” said Jan Pieter Janssen, vice president of business development at Alight.
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