What are the top 5 benefits being offered by employers

With innovative, wide-scale solutions continuing to be introduced in the wonderful world of employee benefits, it’s fair to say that investment from employers on their top talent is improving.

After all, talent attraction and retention is arguably one of the main reasons employee benefits are offered by companies far and wide.

According to our latest research, 49% of businesses have reported that they have increased investment into their benefits package over the past 12 months, a similar number to the 48% that said the same in 2023.

While it’s important for employers to maximise the value from their employee benefit offering, it’s also important for them to get it right when it comes to what they’re offering.

Below, we look at the top 5 benefits being offered by employers in 2024, and whether businesses need to adapt to the demands of their people going forward.

The top 5 benefits being offered by employers

According to our latest research, we’ve found that the top benefits being offered by employers are:

Sometimes, the minimum requirement for maternity/paternity leave doesn’t quite cut the mustard.

Now, employers are doing more to support new families, with additional time off and even cash bonuses being offered by some companies. The benefit ranked as the most popular offering from employers to their staff over the past year.

With 7.6 million people on the NHS waiting list, it’s no surprise that Private Medical Insurance ranks highly in the benefits most offered by employers. In fact, this is up by 14% from 2023.

And with 3.19 million of those patients waiting over 18 weeks, offering PMI ensures employees get fast access to treatment and the specialist support they need.

While different demographics have different ideas about their Pensions, it’s important that employers continue to educate their employees on the importance of their retirement fund.

Whether it’s the savvy savers or those that like to live in the moment, increased Pension contributions are a popular choice for employees too, with 32% saying they’d like this offering from their employer.

For once, there isn’t much of a disconnect between employers and employees when it comes to supply and demand.

By offering employees a budget or fund to aid with the development of their professional skillset and knowledge, employers believe they’re helping colleagues on their path to success.

There’s no doubt it ‘benefits’ the employee as they move forward in their career, but should professional development be considered as an employee benefit, or a company obligation?

The same can be said for a company car. Whilst they no doubt help employees save money on fuel for example, employees would likely benefit with the allowance for this perk being better utilised elsewhere in their offering. And quite often, company cars are only offered to employees in certain senior positions.

Ah, the pitter patter of tiny feet.

Or perhaps it’s the thumping feet of an active toddler. No matter what age your little ones are, 32% of employers say they currently offer Childcare support to their employees.

While flexible/hybrid working is becoming increasingly popular, childcare support is a great alternative to getting support, as some may need to commute into the office or simply require a distraction-free day to fully focus on an important project.

While some working mums and dads may still use the existing Childcare Vouchers scheme, we also have a few Marketplace providers that can help with emergency childcare or workplace nurseries.

Are these benefits really what employees want?

You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink it!

We won’t beat around the bush. It’s very rare that horses will have, if they ever have, any direct correlation with employee benefits, short of treating your employees to a day out at the races.

Regardless, employers can be truly of the belief that their benefit offering is satisfying the needs and the demands of their employees. But just because you offer particular benefits, doesn’t mean your employees will select them.

After all, the UK is constantly adapting to something new. Whether it’s a cost-of-living-crisis or the Covid-19 pandemic, employers and employees alike are constantly facing hurdles, and the latter now want benefits that help them adjust to the world we live in. Salary alone is now no longer enough to keep someone in their job.

So, FORGET supply and demand, and FOCUS on demand and supply.

How can you find out what employees want?

Our two favourite words here at Zest! Employee engagement.

We could wax lyrical about our approach to employee engagement, after all, we’re championing a new era of those very two words with our innovative technology.

It’s all about personalisation and customisation. Employees don’t want something that might work for you as the employer, but not for them. They want something tailored to their specific needs, and by treating each employee as an individual, you’ll unlock their full potential and build a deeper level of engagement.

Listen to what your employees want, whether that’s by sending out surveys, or tailored, targeted emails, it’s important to gage what employees are demanding in order for you to supply it. Ultimately, by doing just that, employee satisfaction will no doubt rise, and in turn improve that all-important talent attraction and retention line.

The key findings from your demand and supply research shouldn’t just be a one-time thing either. The wonderful world of employee benefits and the landscape it lives within changes every single day, as does the requirements of our employees. So, it’s important to always check in on the latest employee needs in order to continuously improve and adapt your scheme offering.

And don’t forget, insights and analytics can be your friend too, and nobody does it better than Zest. Through our technology, we want to empower organisations of all sizes and industries to create a workplace culture where employees feel valued, supported and motivated.

To download our latest Employee Benefits Report in full, click here.

To find out how we can help you to better engage with your employees and offer the benefits they truly want, book a demo with our team today.