According to a new report, organisations are now ramping up environmental policies as well as health benefits amid the Great Resignation, reflecting changing priorities post-pandemic .
New research by Gallagher, a global insurance and risk management company, indicates that many companies are choosing to alter their benefits packages and company policies in order to better meet the needs of the workforce post-pandemic.
Notably, almost three in four firms (71 per cent) have enhanced their benefits package over the last year, owing to the impact of the crisis and the developing needs of their staff as well as wider global issues.
Two in five companies now have an Environmental, Social and Governance policy (ESG) in place which has been prompted by both employee and investor pressure to do more in this area.
Company car usage has also declined by around half over the last two years (falling from 42 per cent in 2019 to just 24 per cent by 2021), suggesting growing demand for climate-friendly policies is having a tangible impact.
Vying to attract and retain talent during a time when many employees are looking to move organisations, benefits provisions have also changed to include more focus on health and wellbeing.
Over a third of companies (36 per cent) offered company-funded health screenings and one in 10 noted an increase in the uptake of Private Medical Insurance by employees.
Maternity and paternity pay has also improved – with four in five (88 per cent) increasing enhanced pay compared to under two-thirds (62 per cent) two years ago.
Agile and flexible working policies were adopted by the majority of companies during and following the pandemic, reflecting a wider shift in working practices.
Nick Burns, Gallagher Benefits’ UK CEO, reflected on these findings:
This will be an ongoing process as in 2022 we can see that benefit redesign is very much on the agenda.
Benefits are of course just a part of the jigsaw puzzle to the wider employee experience and how getting that right will help with talent retention and organisational culture.
*This research was obtained from the Gallagher 2021 Benefits Strategy and Benchmarking Survey report, published in October 2021.
Monica Sharma is an English Literature graduate from the University of Warwick. As Editor for HRreview, her particular interests in HR include issues concerning diversity, employment law and wellbeing in the workplace. Alongside this, she has written for student publications in both England and Canada. Monica has also presented her academic work concerning the relationship between legal systems, sexual harassment and racism at a university conference at the University of Western Ontario, Canada.
