Smart Benefits: SHRM Study Shows More Benefits Offered to Employees
Monday, July 13, 2015
The recently released Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) 2015 Employee Benefits research report on the benefits employers offer to employees reveals that benefits have either remained the same over the past year or increased.
According to the HR professionals surveyed in March of this year about which of 300 benefits their companies offered, the majority of organizations offered the same amount (58%) of employer-sponsored benefits or increased (35%) the number of benefits offered within the last 12 months.
Highlights from the report of five-year trends in employee benefits offered include:
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST• Healthcare and welfare: Over five years, there has been an increase in the percentage of organizations offering mental health care coverage, contraception coverage, vision insurance, short-term disability insurance, health savings accounts (HSAs), critical illness insurance, employer contributions to HSAs and coverage for laser-based vision surgery. There were declines, however, in the percentage of organizations offering health care premium flexible spending accounts.
• Preventive health and wellness: Since many employers are turning to preventive health and wellness benefits to boost employee health and reduce healthcare benefits costs, the results showed increases in the percentage of organizations offering general wellness programs, health care premium discounts for employees’ participation in various programs, health and lifestyle coaching, and preventive programs specifically targeting employees with chronic health conditions over the past five years.
• Retirement savings and planning: The majority of organizations continue to offer defined contribution retirement savings plans. More organizations offered Roth 401(k) or similar defined contribution retirement plans in 2015 compared with 2011 as well as retirement advice tools such as individual investment advice and retirement preparation advice. However, the number of organizations offering defined contribution plan loans in 2015 declined significantly compared to 2011.
• Financial and compensation: From 2011 to 2015, more organizations offered spot bonuses/awards and nonexecutive sign-on bonuses, and donated for participation in charitable events. However, fewer employers provided automobile subsidies for business use of personal vehicles, credit unions, full flexible benefits plans and payroll advances.
Rob Calise is a founding partner of Cornerstone Group, where he helps clients control the costs of employee benefits by focusing on consumer driven strategies and on how to best utilize the tax savings tools the government provides. Rob serves as Chairman of the Board of United Benefit Advisors, and is a board member of the Blue Cross & Blue Shield of RI Broker Advisory Board, United HealthCare of New England Broker Advisory Board and Rhode Island Business Healthcare Advisors Council. He is also a member of the National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU), American Health Insurance Association (AHIA) and the Employers Council on Flexible Compensation (ECFC), as well as various human resource associations. Rob is a graduate of Bryant University with a BS in Finance.
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