7 Most Important Benefits To Employees

By Andrew Nelson

Employees are holding out for jobs that can give them what they deserve. In 2020 only ten percent of companies said they were understaffed; as of May 2021: that number has risen to forty percent. This isn't because employees don't want to work; most say that they're eager to get back into the workforce: it's because the stress of being overworked isn't worth the small amount of pay and benefits many of these desperate companies currently offer.

If you want your business to be competitive and catch the skilled employees it deserves, these are the top things that job seekers want. If you can provide these, you'll never have trouble with hiring or keeping employees.

 

1. Paid Time Off

Employees are always interested in gaining paid time off as a benefit. Not only does it improve their productivity, but it also shows that a business values them and what they have to offer. Over 73% of employers offer paid time off to all full-time employees, which means that it's quickly becoming a standard for businesses. 

 

This time off doesn't mean employees will take advantage of their jobs; most still leave an average of three workdays worth of available time left. However, having this available to them means that workers are empowered to take mental health days off when stress is getting to them and offer the chance to take a day off if a personal emergency happens.

 

These may sound like small things, but it's these little things that allow a worker to feel respected and feel like they can do their job and keep pushing on.  Forcing workers to stay any day they're not too ill to make money is a quick way to get burnout and have employees looking for other places to work.

 

2. Flexible Hours

Is your business one that doesn't have to be constrained by time, but is it anyway?  Flexible hours are among the most important benefits to employees because it gives them a chance to have a healthy work-life balance. This means they can go to work later if they have an appointment in the morning or leave early and make up the work the next day if there's an emergency in the evening without worrying about losing their job. 

 

This doesn’t mean that workers get free reign of a business, just that they get a little more say in when they’re there.

 

3. Paid Family Leave

America has been rated the worst rich country in terms of allowing employees maternity leave. As a result, millennials have fewer children because they can't figure out how to fit raising a child into their daily schedule, affecting the economy.

 

Paid family leave gives employees a chance to handle maternity leave and any time off for familial emergencies and mourning. These are vital to have access to, especially in recent years. Eighty-two percent of Americans state that they want to be paid family leave. If your company isn't offering this as a benefit, it could be losing out on incredible workers.

 

4. Four-day Work Week

Four-day workweeks are gaining in popularity in the United States, with over 53% of people polled by Rasmussen Reports answering that they would welcome a ten-hour workday if it meant they only had to work four days a week. This shorter workweek shows benefits for employers as well, offering less of a need for split-shift work. Employers who put this into action report that they have fewer days where employees call out sick since workers have more off-days to look forward to.

 

5. Health Benefits

There's a crisis of medical debt in the United States. The fear of having to go to an uninsured doctor can force people to forgo necessary medical care, which can, in turn, make them seriously ill- or even kill the person. Health benefits are a life-saving necessity, and job seekers understand that. Ranked as one of the most essential benefits for millennials, many states that they will avoid a job listing or company if they don't offer medical or dental insurance. 

 

Most large employers understand this, with 90% of employers who have over 500 employees offering health benefits. As a result, this benefit has become an expected and necessary reason most job hunters apply to businesses.

 

6. Educational Cost Assistance

Forty-two million Americans have student debt weighing them down; that's 20% of American adults who have to think about their educational debt when making any financial decision.

 

This weight is why so many look for educational assistance when looking for work. The aid can help pay off student loans or assistance with getting into college while also working for the company. Help covering these costs can ensure an employee will keep working for an employer as long as they can. 

 

7. Working Remotely

If there is anything workers have learned from 2020, it's that almost every industry can be turned into remote work. The opportunity to save time on traffic, be available to their kids so that they don't have to pay for childcare, and work in a space that they can feel comfortable and safe is vital to many workers.

 

“More than half of the workers who transitioned to working remotely during the pandemic say that they would love to keep working remotely. So if you want to ensure you get a full selection of skilled applicants, it might be a good idea for your business to be flexible about where your workers complete their jobs.” - Sam Willis, Business Writer and Business Valuation Consultant.

 

Employees Have The Benefit of Being Picky Now

Because of the perk of unemployment, many workers are getting paid more to job-seek than they would be paid at most entry-level jobs. This gives them the chance to be pickier and seek out companies that take steps to improve employee well-being rather than work for the first company that accepts them.

 

Although this uprising is creating chaos for businesses who have always paid minimum wage or tipping wages: it gives the rest of the companies a chance to show they respect their workers. Offering these benefits is the best way to show that.

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