In 2023, sickness absence reached its highest peak in a decade.
According to the annual report from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) on health and wellbeing at work, the average employee takes 7.8 days of sick leave every year. Plus, in a three-month period, 53% of employees said they had turned up to work, despite not feeling well enough[1].
The annual cost to UK businesses is growing. Research on behalf of Aegon revealed that the combined annual cost of lost work days due to financial stress (£3.7 billion), absenteeism (£2.5 billion), and presenteeism (£3.7 billion), is now £10.3 billion – a 67% increase from 2021[1].
Chances are, your business could be paying a price in lost productivity, so here are three valuable benefits that you could offer to help retain happy employees.
1. Salary sacrifice
Despite the potential financial perks, more than half of workers don’t know about or understand how salary sacrifice works[2].
In effect, salary sacrifice allows employees to reduce their pre-tax salary in exchange for a non-cash benefit.
Employees could choose to use salary sacrifice to cover partial costs for:
- A company car
- A cycle-to-work scheme
- Childcare vouchers
- Additional pension contributions.
Participation is optional and employees can select the perk that’s most valuable for them and their families.
For example, using salary sacrifice to enhance pension contributions could help workers boost their take-home pay today and increase financial security in retirement.
Salary sacrifice can be complex to understand and communicate, yet the benefits – for both employers and employees – could be significant.
2. Buying and selling holiday
Delivering a scheme where workers can buy annual leave offers the potential for additional time off when they really need it. Conversely, people can also “sell back” any unused leave.
Employees can use the scheme to create more flexibility to spend time with family, or go on extended travels.
As well as improved work-life balance, they may benefit from:
- Stress reduction – preventing burnout and improving mental health
- Better performance – taking regular breaks can help employees be more productive and focused at work
- Flexibility – buying more days of leave could help relieve external pressures, to deal with a family situation, for example.
Resulting in several knock-on benefits for employers:
- Increased job satisfaction
- Greater retention, reducing turnover rates and costs of recruitment and training
- Reduced overtime, balanced workloads and rested employees can reduce the need for overtime pay, leading to cost savings.
You could also consider rewarding employee loyalty by increasing holiday entitlement after a certain number of years with the business.
3. Employee assistance programmes and healthcare cash plans
These are two particularly flexible benefits worth considering.
An employee assistance programme (EAP) can help support employees’ mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing, through a range of flexible services, including:
- Counselling and therapy sessions
- Work-life balance support
- Financial and legal advice.
Likewise, a healthcare cash plan lets employees claim back a portion of the money they spend on healthcare, including:
- Optician appointments, or buying glasses, or contact lenses
- Virtual GP and prescription services
- Dental treatment
- Physiotherapy
- Counselling
Many also offer discounts for high street shops, family days out, restaurants and takeaway delivery services.
Such plans can provide valuable savings on health and lifestyle costs and you can even offer different levels of cover according to employees’ seniority.
Plans can also provide cover for partners and immediate family members.
Deliver a range of flexible benefits through Titan’s Bionic Benefit platform
Titan’s Bionic Benefits platform is a hassle-free way for you and your employees to manage and access available business benefits.
From traditional insurance benefits to services supporting physical, mental, and financial wellbeing, you can create a bespoke business benefits package to suit your team.
Get in touch
We can help you deliver an employee benefits package that fits your budget and is valued by your employees. To find out more, get in touch.
Email info.wp@titanwh.com or call us on 0800 048 0150.
Please note
The information contained in this article is based on the opinion of Titan Wealth Planning and does not constitute financial advice or a recommendation for any investment or retirement strategy.
A pension is a long-term investment not normally accessible until 55 (57 from April 2028). The fund value may fluctuate and can go down, which would have an impact on the level of pension benefits available. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
The tax implications of pension withdrawals will be based on your individual circumstances. Thresholds, percentage rates and tax legislation may change in subsequent Finance Acts.
[1] https://cebr.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Financial-Wellbeing-2023.pdf
[2] https://www.ftadviser.com/pensions/2024/07/15/fifth-of-uk-workers-have-never-heard-of-salary-sacrifice/
[1] https://www.cipd.org/uk/knowledge/reports/health-well-being-work/
