What is one employee benefit that every company should provide?
To help you identify employee benefits that every company should be providing their employees, we asked HR managers and business leaders this question for their best insights. From maternity leave to profit-sharing bonuses to active wellness programs, there are several employee benefits that are recommended as most essential for every company to provide for their workforce.
Here are 11 employee benefits these leaders provide their employees:
- Maternity Leave
- Work From Home
- Continuing Education Programs
- Gym Membership
- Profit-Sharing Bonuses
- Stipends for Employees to Support Small Businesses
- Paid Time Off
- Personalized Individual Employee Support
- Flexible Work Schedule
- Adequate Sick Leave
- Active Wellness Programs
Maternity Leave
Parental leave in general is such an important benefit, but especially a strong maternity leave. There are so many intelligent and creative women that would instantly take businesses to that next level, but the decision between growing a family and growing a career is keeping them back. Make it so women no longer have to choose and are offered a generous maternity leave. If you believe that your business is too small to offer this, I challenge that. Sometimes you can’t afford not to offer this benefit!
Audrey Hutnick, Smallwave Marketing
Work From Home
It may seem trivial, but some companies are deciding to reduce and limit the possibility for their employees to work from home. Therefore, some have taken a step back and returned to the pre-covid way of working. Instead, it is now clear that allowing working some days from home results in better productivity and performance.
Rafal Mlodzki, passport-photo online
Continuing Education Programs
Help employees up-skill their careers by offering continuing education programs. Not only does this benefit employees in their current working environment, but it can help them take measures to future-proof their choices if they decide to move on in their career. While it may seem counterintuitive for a company to train employees to potentially move into other jobs, the overall benefits are excellent. The more companies that provide these sorts of education and up-skilling benefits, the higher the quality of talent in the job market overall. Employees appreciate a company that provides them with opportunities for advancement, both within and outside of the company itself. In an ideal world every company would provide Education higher opportunities.
Boye Fajinmi, TheFutureParty
Gym Membership
One employee benefit that every company should provide is a gym membership. This benefit gives employees the opportunity to work out and stay healthy, which can improve their overall quality of life. It can also save the company money in the long run if employees are healthier and are less likely to take time off due to illness. It is a great example of a win-win employee benefit.
Matthew Ramirez, Paraphrase Tool
Profit-Sharing Bonuses
An employee is as much a part of the success of a business as an entrepreneur or leadership team, and one employee benefit that will truly make a difference for your workforce, as well as your brand, is rewarding employees with profit-sharing bonuses. As an integral part of your organization and as genuine contributors to its growth and success, the committed and hardworking employees of your company deserve a taste of its growth and success too. While a profit-sharing bonus allows them to revel in the success of the brand and their efforts, knowing how they are bound to be gained from an upward spiral for the brand also inspires them to work harder the next time around.
Kris Harris, Nootka Saunas
Stipends for Employees to Support Small Businesses
GoCo gives its employees a stipend to spend at a local business every week. We spotlight a small, minority-owned business and encourage our team to support them. It’s a win-win: we can support a local company that’s helping the community while treating ourselves! This is an awesome opportunity to support local entrepreneurs and discover incredible services.
Nir Leibovich, GoCo
Paid Time Off
The face of business is changing, and with it, the approach to paid time off is also transforming. Thus, PTO is becoming an employee benefit that every company should provide. And this includes vacation time, sick days, and even days off without any particular occasion. While not required by law, more and more companies decide to offer it to the employees to attract new talents and remapping competitive in the market. Therefore, saying that PTO is becoming a standard would not be an exaggeration. Why is this benefit so significant? Paid time off encourages employees to take days off and relax. This, in turn, is extremely important in terms of employee productivity and efficiency and in the fight against burnout. Moreover, in the context of sick leave, it keeps employees from coming to the office battling with presenteeism and spreading gems.
Nina Paczka, Resume Now
Personalized Individual Employee Support
The best thing that an organization can do is identify the unique needs of its workforce and create an all-inclusive system that offers them the support they need. This could look like access to mental health professionals, telehealth services, additional time off, and in some cases, additional flexibility in their schedules. Rather than sticking to a “one-size-fits-all” approach, personalization is the need of the hour and something that employees will appreciate more than a mixed bag of employee benefits.
Benoit Lacroix, Portmoni
Flexible Work Schedule
One employee benefit that every company should provide is a flexible work schedule.
Flexible schedules allow employees to set their hours, which can help them balance their work and life demands and are especially important for parents and caregivers. It allows employees to balance their life outside of work with their job, ultimately leading to higher productivity and happiness among employees. A flexible work schedule can be as simple as allowing employees to take breaks whenever needed or to work from home once or twice a week. These small changes can significantly affect employee satisfaction, engagement, and productivity.
Laura Miller, Learn Financial Strategy
Adequate Sick Leave
Adequate sick leave. One thing the pandemic has shined a light on is how often employees used to work through illness. It shouldn’t be the case that a worker has to struggle through a day when they’re under the weather or take vacation time in order to get some rest. Every company should provide a reasonable amount of sick leave so that their employees can take care of their physical health whenever necessary.
Vimla Black Gupta, Ourself
Active Wellness Programs
The well-being of employees drives the well-being of the company or organization. When employees are healthy and happy in their minds and bodies, and the company has supported their means of getting there, they are more likely to say nice things about the company; and be more productive, creative and collaborative at work. Wellness programs make talent attraction and retention a breeze for the company, and generally speaking, make the workplace a nicer and friendlier place to be. For employees: Make sure the wellness program isn’t just another app, but actually includes real-time coaches, classes, and programs that are relevant to you.
Wendy Chamberlain-Cooper, ProMotion Training Systems, Inc.