The Ultimate Guide To Employee Benefits In 2024

As the world of work continues to evolve, so do the expectations around employee benefits. In 2024, staying ahead means understanding not just the basics, but the latest trends and innovations that can set your organization apart. 

The top three sought-after employee benefits are health-related benefits, paid time off, and dental insurance. However, there are many more employee benefits, and employers must know how to tackle them effectively in the employee benefits package.

In this guide, Aniday walks you through the important employee benefits, and how to design and measure the effectiveness of these packages. 

What Are Employee Benefits?

Employee benefits are any type of compensation given to employees other than the basic wage. Some employee benefits are compulsory for public-sector companies, while private-sector businesses can choose the ideal benefits they want to offer based on the country's rules and regulations.

These employee benefits are a key strategy for retaining talented employees, ensuring their well-being, and providing job satisfaction.

According to Teamstage statistics, providing health-related benefits to employees will continue to grow in the upcoming years. 

What Are The Key Employee Benefits Examples?

Employers offer many employee benefits but may differ based on a public or private sector company. However, here are some key employee benefits given by the employers that Aniday has collected:

1. Health-Related Employee Benefits

Health-related employee benefits cover the employee's health. Employers providing these benefits ensure the employee's health is fit. Here are some health-related employee benefits:

• Prescription drug coverage
• Wellness programs
• Employee assistance programs (EAPs)
• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• Confidential counseling

Employers can also support health and wellness programs to enhance the overall well-being of their employees. Here are some health and wellness programs employers can consider:

• Regular health check-ups
• Gym memberships
• Mental health support

Most employers enroll in health insurance plans to cover the essential health-related factors for employees. The following are the key types of health insurance plans offered:

• Preferred provider organizations (PPOs): Under PPOs, employees can consult any doctor without obtaining any referral.
• Health maintenance organizations (HMOs): Under HMOs, employees must pick a primary care physician whom they can always consult.
• High-deductible health plans (HDHPs): Under HDHP, there are high deductibles, but they are offered at lower premiums.

91% of Generation Z and 78% of millennials also believe that every company should implement a mental health insurance policy.

2. Paid Time Off Benefits

Paid time off is a highly valued benefit, allowing employees to recharge and enjoy their time off without any worries. Also, paid time off includes the following:

• Family medical leave
• Holidays
• Parental leave
• Personal time
• Sick time
• Vacation
• Volunteer time

3. Financial Employee Benefits

Financial benefits are integral for employees, offering long-term support and security that they value. Here are critical financial employee benefits provided by employers:

• Compensation package
• Retirement benefits
• Financial coverage in the event of a death or unable to work due to serious illness
• Financial planning assistance
• Life insurance
• Long and short-term disability insurance
• Stock options or company equity

Providing the ability to purchase stocks or being a part of equity compensation attracts many employees. Here are two main types of stock options given to employers:

• Employee Stock Option Plans (ESOPs): ESOPs allow employees to purchase company stocks at a future date for a specific price.
• Restricted Stock Units (RSUs): RSUs allow employees to purchase stocks according to a vesting schedule. 

4. Retirement And Pension Plans

If an employer contributes to retirement and pension funds, it helps secure the employee's future. Since this is one of the primary concerns, employers will also achieve the trust and loyalty of the employees by implementing this strategy.

5. Work-Life Balance Benefits

Employers should provide a work-life balance to ensure every employee's well-being. Many employees suffer from stress, loneliness, burnout, and other mental health issues.

Employers should act proactively by offering work-life balance benefits. When employers provide them, it helps the employees enhance their efficiency and overall well-being. Here are some work-life balance benefits Aniday suggested employers should offer:

• Commuter benefits
• Flexible work schedules
• Recognition awards
• Remote work arrangements
• Sabbaticals
• Tuition reimbursement

How To Make An Strategic Employee Benefits Package?

Even though employers know all the employee benefit options they can provide, Aniday recommended that they should learn the correct way to create an effective employee benefit package. Hence, here are some critical questions that employers can consider while making effective employee benefits packages:

• Does it align with your company's goals and objectives?
• Does your employee prefer this benefit?
• Does it meet the employee's overall expectations?
• Does it contribute to employee well-being?
• Will it enhance employee performance and overall job satisfaction?
• Did you assess the employee benefits your competitor is offering?
• Did you standardize the core benefits, including health insurance, retirement plans, and leave policy?
• Does it meet the local rules and regulations of your country?
• Is it within the budgetary requirements?

Even though employers would create employee benefit packages that align with employee requirements, this should create a win-win strategy for the employer.

Since employee requirements change with time, employers must ensure that the benefit package is updated frequently.

How Do We Measure The Success Of Employee Benefits?

Employers should measure the effectiveness of the employee benefits package. So, after employers make an effective employee benefits package and execute it, here is how to measure the success of employee benefits package on the employees:

• Make a Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) checklist to track employee engagement, efficiency, productivity, and satisfaction.
• Next, track the KPIs to identify how well they contributed to enhancing employee efficiency and satisfaction.
• Keep track of the benefit utilization rate to identify how well your employees prefer the given benefits.
• Identify the Return on Investment (ROI) gained by the employer.
• Collect employee feedback via forms, surveys, and HR analytics tools to identify your employee preferences in depth.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, there are many employee benefits, and both employers and employees need to know about them. Employers must also efficiently strategize to make their benefits attractive to talented employees.

If you need help with Employer of Record (EOR) services, feel free to contact Aniday. We're here to assist you. Reach out to us directly or through our headhunting today!

We hope this guide helped understand employee benefits in depth!