Income Protection was cited as more important than Life Assurance cover by 74 per cent of respondents. However, fewer than half of organisations offer this benefit.
The provision offers a continuation of income should an employee fall into long-term absence due to illness or injury. Although companies accept that providing such a offering is worthwhile, more than 80 per cent have Life Assurance compared to only 47 per cent which provide Income Protection.
Steve Herbert, Head of Benefits Strategy for Jelf Employee Benefits, said: “Employees are three times more likely to be off work with a long-term illness than die. This is a strange mismatch, and one that employers really should seek to address.”
Due to developments in medical treatments many more conditions are now treatable, suggesting that this type of provision is more relevant now than it has been in the past.
Continued income while suffering from ill health can help to maintain the wellbeing of the employee by removing any financial concerns that they may have, explained Herbert.
He concluded: “It is a vital component of a benefits package for the 21st century, and is one of the most important benefits an employer can offer. We believe that employers may be failing their employees by not offering it.”
