5 Employee Benefits You Can Expand in a Recession

Thought the spookiest time of the year was over? Think again. As the possibility of a recession continues to haunt our days, more and more employees face the threat of layoffs and/or the potential loss of benefits. 

Benefits are not just “bonus perks” for employees to mess around with; they are necessary components of a job that they give their time and talent daily. Additionally, many employees consider benefits a crucial part of their overall compensation package. Our recommendation? Expand the benefits you already have in place for your employees. We outline a few you can start with.

Education

Following a year of the Great Resignation and Quiet Quitting, employees are as hot of a commodity as ever. We all know that benefits win the talent attraction game, but what about retainment? It turns out employees are looking for ways to grow in their prospective careers, with 68 percent stating that upskill programs at their current workplace would persuade them to stay. 

If your company is grappling with employee turnover, take this as your sign to expand upon employee education. Not only will you keep your most talented employees, but those that take advantage of these provided educational programs will be able to utilize their skills for a greater purpose at the company. 

Life insurance and short-term disability policies

The recession is hitting us all, making employees even wearier in their spending. Life events are sometimes impossible to control, so why not provide income protection for your employees in the case of these emergencies? Business owners are making income protection more of a priority, for this reason, issuing group life insurance policies or short-term disability policies. Life insurance and short-term disability policies offer a way to provide income protection to individuals if they have to be away from work for any length of time, which can come in handy in the event of unexpected sickness or death. 

Health and wellness

From COVID-19 to a recession, we are doing more work than ever, resulting in burnout across all industries. According to recent surveys, employees feel burnout for two main reasons: heavy workloads and lack of flexible hours. Before the pandemic, employees were less willing to partake in health and wellness benefits; however, in 2022, employees are citing that flexible schedules and increased vacation time are necessary. 

Life planning accounts (LPAs) are the up-and-coming trend employers utilize to support their employees in ways often forgotten. LPAs are customizable and can be designed with anything from gym memberships to mental health counseling

Dependent care

Workload pressures and economic woes have made it rather difficult to make time for the things that truly matter, such as caring for the ones we love. If flexible work schedules are not possible for your organization, consider implementing child and elderly care programs into your benefits package to support your employees as they are working longer hours. These benefits go a long way, especially if your employees have caregiving responsibilities.

Financial wellness

Preparing for a recession means properly allocating our budgets. With so many changes occurring over the past couple of years, employees may need a little help and guidance on saving money in the best way possible. 

Using the PTO Exchange platform, employees can turn their unused PTO into causes that contribute to overall financial wellness:

  • Retirement: Allow employees to self-direct PTO towards their 401(k)
  • Education: Help employees pay off those nagging student loans
  • E-cash: Encourage employees to save some cash in case of emergencies

Give your employees a reason to stay

These days of economic woes are impacting everyone–not just employees. Make sure you advocate for those in your office and yourself to get peace of mind as we head into a period of economic uncertainty. 

To discover more flexible-benefits options, check out PTO Exchange and schedule a demo of our program today.

Published on Nov 03, 2022 by Rob Whalen

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