Last October, banking group Standard Chartered introduced a plug-in hybrid and electric vehicle (EV) salary sacrifice scheme for all its 2,500 UK-based employees.
The scheme, which is provided by Tusker, covers hybrids and EVs emitting less than 75g CO2 per km, and, has recognised how the world of work has changed since the pandemic, says Julie Everitt, head of HR for Europe and Americas at Standard Chartered.
“We know that hybrid and remote working have changed travel patterns," she says. "In a post-Covid world, the new norms of the daily commute are much different to before, as people spend more time working from home and less time travelling to the office, and this pattern looks set to stay.
“However, when people do travel, there is still a desire to own and use a personal car, whether to commute or for other purposes. It becomes a question of understanding what our employees prefer to drive and offering a scheme that helps them be more environmentally friendly in their choice of car.
“We think it’s a valuable employee benefit that helps our workforce reduce their own environmental footprint and is an attractive offer to retain employees and appeal to prospective talent. Additionally, the scheme aligns with the bank’s own roadmap to net zero by 2050 and gives access to electric vehicles that employees may not have had before.”
At launch, the scheme was backed by a bespoke communications and promotional campaign. “We provided opportunities to meet the new car provider, written internal announcements, a questions-and-answers factsheet, employee webinars, digital visual adverts televised around the office and a prize draw for employees participating in the scheme,” explains Everitt.
But ongoing communication and promotion remains important. “Success rests on communicating the scheme well to employees, after all, spending your salary is a personal matter, and providing a quality range of electric vehicles to choose from,” Everitt adds.
