Employers Should Look to Voluntary Benefits as Economical, Attractive Employee Appreciation Solution

In our economic climate, employers should be considering voluntary benefits which are funded thru payroll deductions therefore not costing the employer any additional expenses and in addition may reduce some payroll tax expenses.

A new study MetLife’s 7th Annual Employee Benefits Trends Study provided finding that employers are seriously underestimating the appeal of voluntary benefits at a time when benefits appreciation is soaring to new heights.

“One of the things that was surprising to us last year was how grateful and appreciative employees were about benefits they received in the workplace, whether they paid for them themselves or not,” reports Bill Mullaney, president of MetLife’s Institutional Business.

Mullaney thinks the findings indicate that employees are appreciating a broader range of benefits. He says the economy has served as a wakeup call to employees who now appear more interested in and appreciative of both their employer-paid and voluntary benefit plans than ever before.

Of the more than 1,300 full-time employees MetLife interviewed last August and November, 40% were highly interested in a wider array of voluntary benefits. But the problem is that only 17% of more than 1,500 benefits decision-makers polled included expansion of voluntary benefits among their top strategies for 2009.

MetLife researchers suggest this perception gap “highlights missed opportunities to deliver and get the most from each benefits dollar.” As such, they recommend that employers explore voluntary benefit offerings with an emphasis on enabling product choice, as well as conduct an employee survey to understand benefit priorities, needs and potential participation levels.

For more information on setting up and successfully introducing Voluntary Benefit Plans, please contact Legacy Benefits & Insurance Services.