With unemployment rates low and professional jobs in high demand, many U.S. employers are facing challenges when it comes to keeping up with their competition. In an annual survey by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), over two-thirds of companies surveyed said they’re having trouble recruiting individuals with the skills they need to fill certain jobs.
As a result of this struggle, many respondents said they’ve increased a number of their benefit offerings for 2017. Here are a few they’re targeting…
- Health insurance – The demand for quality, affordable health insurance coverage is one that can’t be ignored. While there’s been little change in the number of companies offering coverage to full-time workers, one-third of those surveyed indicated they’re also offering it to part-time employees this year. That’s up 27 percent since 2014.
- Wellness initiatives – Almost a fourth of organizations surveyed said they had increased their wellness benefit offerings over the past year. Of all the different initiatives addressed, the one with the greatest increase was the addition of standings desks for employees who want them. That perk jumped from 13 percent to 44 percent over the last five years.
- Retirement – Employers are stepping up their game when it comes to the retirement benefits they offer. One way is by allowing traditional 401(k) funds to be converted into a Roth 401(k). That trend has increased significantly since 2013.
- Flexible benefits – Companies are also turning to non-traditional benefits that may not have an outright cost associated with them. Some examples include introducing a casual dress code and allowing telecommuting, a flexible work benefit that has increased 59 percent on an ad hoc basis over the past five years.
It’s important to constantly evaluate your benefits package and make sure your offerings are evolving to meet your employees’ changing needs. However, it’s never been more important to ensure your benefits are as attractive as possible for potential employees.
Not all additions to your benefits package have to cost a fortune. In fact, there are many that can be implemented at little to no cost to you. Contact us if we can help make your organization a top contender in today’s competitive job market.