Young employees ‘could take part in flexible benefit schemes’

Younger employees in the UK are more likely to take part in flexible benefit schemes, according to the Institute For Employment Studies (IES).

Duncan Brown, director of reward services at the IES, said that in general flexible benefits have been designed to appeal to a younger and more diverse workforce.

However, responding to research by Mercer which showed that younger employees in their 20s were far less likely to participate in such schemes compared to older colleagues, he argued that this may be a communications issue.

"If young people aren’t taking part it usually indicates a more widespread underlying problem with the communications and understanding of the scheme," Mr Brown noted.

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He went on to state that lower contribution rates may appeal more to younger employees.

The Mercer research also revealed that only 47 per cent of workers in their 20s were taking part in flexible benefits schemes, compared to figures of up to 70 per cent for those aged in their 30s up to 50s.