Although many employees continue to view their benefits positively, both their perceived value of the benefits provided and their trust in the company to make the best benefits decisions have declined a bit since the onset of COVID-19, according to a new study by The Hartford.
The Hartford conducted the survey in two waves - the first wave in March, 2020, just before the outbreak of COVID-19 in the US - and the second wave in June, 2020, after the pandemic forced widespread lockdowns and economic disruption. The survey found slight employee erosion on 3 specific questions related to sentiment:
While there has been a slight decline in sentiments, it's important to note that a strong majority (73%) still value their organization's benefits and indeed count on them for support, especially during COVID-19.
In response, The Hartford found that many employers are actively considering additional benefits to support employees during the pandemic.
In order of greatest change (before vs. after) in interest, the additional benefits included:
Adding new employee benefits sounds great, but do these resonate with employees? According to the study, the top ranked benefits from the employee perspective were:
Plotting these new rankings shows a clear overlap for EAPs and additional PTO. Interestingly, employees give more relative priority to volunteer time than employers. Something organizations should note as they prioritize their benefits packages for 2021.
“Now is the perfect time for employers to address employees’ changing attitudes about benefits. As employee familiarity with benefits also declined, our research uncovered an opportunity for employers to increase trust by focusing more on communication, including education about their available benefits and what they cover. This is going to be crucial as annual benefits enrollment quickly shifts from an in-person experience to a more virtual one.”
Bennett says that in addition to adding and expanding benefit offerings, it is key for employers to communicate and remind employees about available resources. That’s an especially important lesson in preparation for open enrollment season this fall.
“Communication is crucial,” he says. “HR departments need to be engaging their workforce. A moment like this reveals things that a lot of people haven’t thought about or considered but now reveals what needs to be done.”
Check out The Hartford press release and access to the full survey results.
COVID-19 has impacted employee stress factors. The biggest changes relate to personal stressors, led by a +14 point increase in "social/political climate." Stress around debt levels and saving for the future also understandably increased, as employees feel the pinch of economic contraction and uncertainty.
Employees were asked which three factors they feel are currently contributing most to their stress levels:
The study also asked both employers and employees to rank their company's overall response to COVID-19.
It seems many organizations are doing what they can to support employees during the pandemic, and this is recognized by most employees as well.
The Hartford’s 2020 Future of Benefits Study was an online survey fielded in two waves. The first wave was fielded from Feb. 27-March 13, 2020, just before the pandemic escalated in the United States, and included 761 employers and 1,503 employees. The second wave was fielded from June 15-June 30, 2020 and included 567 employers and 1,038 employees. The employers surveyed were HR professionals who manage/decide employee benefits and employees surveyed were actively employed. The margin of error is employer +/-4% and employee +/-3% at a 95% confidence level.
*Note: While the difference was significant, the sample size on PTO was much smaller than other options as most employers surveyed already offered some type of PTO.
PTO Exchange has developed a flexible benefits platform that turns unused paid time off (paid time off) into liquid assets that can be converted into things employees value – retirement accounts, student loan payments, emergency cash-out, donations, leave-sharing, charitable causes and more.
This is a notable time with many companies making bold adjustments to their employee benefits strategy and are trying to find new ways to help their employee community bridge the changes that are affecting their lives.
If enhancing financial wellness and providing flexibility through PTO conversion is something that can help your organization navigate through this situation, we are here to help.
Learn more how PTO Exchange can help with COVID-19 by downloading our free data sheet.
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