What are corporate gym memberships?
Employers can offer a corporate gym membership on an employee-paid or discounted basis, with many gyms offering membership deals to organisations. Through membership, staff can access a gym, health club, leisure or sports centre, or exercise classes as part of a voluntary or flexible benefits package.
What types of schemes are available?
There are a variety of corporate gym membership schemes on offer. These include discounted contracts with local and national gym operators as negotiated by employers for employees, which are sometimes extended to family members, through benefits platforms, or access to on-site gym facilities at little or no cost to staff. For example, Nestle has its own onsite health and fitness facilities and Google has its own rooftop running track at its London headquarters.
Hussle provides a discounted corporate gym membership with one pass, which enables employees to access fitness venues across different brands in 94% of UK postcode regions.
The Gym Group offers two flexible membership schemes, with its ultimate version including access to five different gyms and free access to the Fiit app to ensure all workers have access to fitness facilities that suit their work arrangements.
Gympass offers employees flexible access to gyms, studios, classes, training, and wellness apps all in one benefit.
Meanwhile, Epassi UK, formerly Incorpore, has two types of corporate discounted memberships: voluntary scheme MyGymDiscounts.co.uk and GymFlex, via salary deduction. Both include access to large, small and independent gyms and leisure centres. These also include digital fitness brands such as Peloton, Les Mills and Garmin for hybrid and remote workers, which it introduced following the pandemic.
Gym membership can also be included in a private medical insurance (PMI) plan as an added-value service at a discounted rate. For example, Vitality’s PMI scheme offers up to 50% off membership at Virgin Active, Nuffield Health and PureGym, both near employees’ workplaces and their homes. Members can access discounted wearable fitness devices, running shoes, and can get cashback on a Peloton device instead of a gym membership.
Gym membership can also be offered at a discounted rate through a group health cash plan.
What are the cost implications?
Membership options are available to employees for as little as £5 per month, depending on the gym chain and branch location. Membership contracts can vary, with some requiring staff to sign up for a minimum of a year. The costs to the employer are based on the size of the organisation, with the option to pay monthly or annually.
Vitality’s 50% gym discount equates to member savings of £10.99 - £110 per month, excluding the joining fee, while a 12-month Fiit subscription is provided to both VitalityHealth and VitalityLife members and would retail at £119.99. MyGymDiscounts requires the employer to pay a platform fee which is typically £3 per head, depending on the number of eligible employees.
Are there any tax or legal issues?
Gym membership is treated as a benefit in kind (BIK), which means this is taxed as part of the employee’s salary and can be reported through the payrolling of taxable benefits, or under P11D at the end of the tax year. Regular gym membership is considered to be a taxable benefit under BIK rules, so employers must include the value in employees’ taxable income. However, there is a special BIK exemption for gym memberships that are part of a certified corporate wellbeing programme, in which instance they do not need to be included.
What are the current market trends or developments?
Vitality’s January 2023 Britain’s healthiest workplace survey found 69% of UK employees would like their employers to do more to support their health and wellbeing needs. Hussle notes that employees are looking for a corporate gym provision that they can use regardless of their working location and on their days off, as well as a low-cost service that gives them a variety of facility type to stay motivated.
According to Gallagher’s October 2023 Organisational and career wellbeing strategy report, the percentage of employers offering gym membership has risen to 45% from 34% in 2022, as more prioritise health and wellbeing in their benefits offering. One of the main reasons for this is that employers know they need to invest in staff wellbeing, and those that do typically see a large increase in gym participation, according to Epassi UK.
Employers are also prioritising health and fitness offerings for employees because they understand that it is important to create and maintain a healthy, happy and productive workforce. The Gym Group has seen an increase in demand for employee benefits that promote health and wellbeing as well as requests for in-house support wellbeing initiatives from partners and suppliers, such as classes or workshops to promote the benefits of exercise or wellbeing support.
As of June 2023, 30.7% of The Gym Group’s total members were on its premium membership that offers access to online workout plans on the Fiit app, which was an increase year on year, and suggests that multi-site access, the ability to choose gyms near both the workplace and home, is appealing to staff. Meanwhile, Gympass's May 2023 Return on wellbeing report found that 78% of HR leaders reported their wellbeing programme that feature gym membership saved them money on healthcare expenses.
Who are the main providers?
The main providers of corporate gym memberships include David Lloyd Leisure, Epassi UK, Gymflex, Gympass, Hussle, Nuffield Health, Pure Gym, The Gym Group, Virgin Active and Vitality.
