IMPROVE YOUR RECRUITMENT GAME WITH EMPLOYEE HEALTH BENEFITS

When it comes to recruiting and retaining employees, every employer is looking for a secret weapon. After all, great employees can be the catalyst to growth and success for the business. Turns out, the right employee health benefits plan can help with that.

Competition is Fierce

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on people around the world and how they work. Many people are now working remotely; this makes it very easy for employees to change employers. This is large because it removes the need to relocate to a new city for work. It also makes the prospect of a longer commute moot. As such, competition for employees is fiercer than ever.

Research shows that employee health benefits are important to employees. They can make the difference between a prospective employee accepting or declining an offer. Wages alone aren’t enough. Research shows that in many cases, the prospective employee is willing to accept lower wages when they are accompanied by a robust employee benefits plan.

Look further than traditional employee benefits

Traditional employee benefits aren’t going to be your golden ticket to recruiting the best employees. In such a competitive labour market, you’ll have to incorporate new and innovative employee benefits in order to really attract the top performers. The right employee benefits provider will create new products to meet the needs of employees. They’ll see a problem area and create products and benefits to address the problem. The possibilities are endless, but there are a few non-traditional employee benefits that are a good place to start.

1. Virtual healthcare
   Virtual healthcare refers to connecting with a doctor or nurse practitioner via mobile phone, tablet or computer. GroupHEALTH’s virtual healthcare provider is Telus Virtual Care. Telus Virtual Care is available 24/7, so employees can access healthcare any hour of the day or night, from anywhere in the world.
   Virtual healthcare has been invaluable during the COVID-19 pandemic as people have been required to physically distance from others. For employees, it has given them access to healthcare while keeping them safe from the virus. In addition, employees have discovered how convenient and easy it is to use virtual healthcare. It saves employees time and money as they don’t have to travel to the doctor’s office. It’s fast becoming standard in many progressive employee health benefit plans.
2. Prescription drug delivery
   We now live in a world where we can have almost anything we want delivered to us. Prescription drugs are no different. At GroupHEALTH, we created Smart Rx solutions. These solutions were originally created as a means to help employers control prescription drug costs, but there are a lot of positives for employees too. Using our preferred pharmacy providers, employees experience the ultimate in convenience as they have their prescription drugs delivered to their door. The service is especially suitable for those on regular maintenance medications; employees have the choice to have refills shipped automatically when they are getting low. There’s also the added convenience of having all medication information kept in a single location, along with pharmacists who will reach out to employees’ doctors for prescription refills (when authorized by the employee). This innovative service is a valuable offering for employees.
3. Accident and Serious Illness (ASI) Benefits
   For many employees, the idea of traditional Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) seems outdated. That’s because it is! Non-traditional employee benefits mean offering coverage that is relevant to the here and now. Accident and Serious Illness benefits are a good example. They’re the more sophisticated cousin of AD&D and, in addition to traditional accident coverage, they also cover serious illnesses like heart attack, stroke and cancer. This is relevant because serious illness happens. This type of coverage pays a lump sum at the diagnosis of a covered illness, so employees and their families have money to help take the financial stress out of an already stressful situation. This is an example of looking at a traditional benefit and taking it to the next level.
4. Health spending account
   Gone are the days when a “one size fits all” approach to employee benefits worked. Enter: the health spending account. A health spending account provides employees with the flexibility to spend benefit dollars on the benefits that they want. It functions like a bank account; employees start off with a finite amount in their account, and the account balance decreases as they spend money on specific benefits. This eliminates “benefits” that aren’t really benefits to some workers. Instead, adding this element of choice empowers employees to make the most of their benefit dollars.
   The other great thing about a health spending account is that it can be used to pay for unpaid portions of other benefits. For example, if an employee had prescription drug coverage but was required to pay a small balance for each prescription, they could claim that balance through their health spending account and be reimbursed. Including a health spending account along with more traditional coverage is a great way to keep everyone happy.

Looking further than a traditional employee benefits plan doesn’t just apply to the benefits that are covered. The other (very important) piece to the puzzle is to look for innovative cost control mechanisms that can keep the plan affordable for your company. An employee benefits plan that isn’t sustainable isn’t going to help you recruit and retain employees.

Retain the top performers

When focused on recruiting top performers, it’s also important to ensure that you’re retaining the top performers that you already have. Recruiting and training new employees is costly; holding on to the top employees that you already have saves money and resources.

Consider surveying current employees to find out what they really think of their employee benefits plan. Work with your provider to tweak your plan as a result of the feedback. Reviewing your plan to look for improvements should be a regular occurrence (usually annually). Better to stay ahead of the curve than scramble when employees start leaving. It’s much easier to change employers these days, so make retention a priority.

Good Advice is Key

Do you want to maximize the impact your employee benefits plan has on recruitment and retainment? Are you looking to move beyond traditional employee benefits offerings? Review your options with one of our licensed advisors on the phone, or contact us for a comparison quote.

Whether you’re looking for extended health and dental coverage, disability coverage, or life and critical illness coverage, GroupHEALTH has affordable benefits packages that work as hard as you do.