New research, revealed exclusively on our site earlier this week, found that more than half of employees are not satisfied with their benefits package.
The study by Gympass also found that 89% of those surveyed believe good workplace perks would make them more likely to accept a job offer. Interestingly, the same percentage would be more likely to stay in their current role for the same reason.
The findings suggest benefits maybe failing to deliver and, arguably more importantly, that employers are missing a trick when it comes to using their offering as a recruitment and retention tool.
Among the most popular benefits cited were access to free fruit (57%), health checks (54%) and gym memberships (42%). Two-fifths would like a good pension plan.
Pensions schemes have also been on the minds of members of the Work and Pensions Committee, as they have urged the government to legislate to enable the creation of collective defined contribution (CDC) pension schemes in the UK.
The recommendations followed the committee’s inquiry into whether such arrangements could benefit UK savers, and whether they would work cohesively alongside the existing pension freedoms. Its investigation also explored whether CDC schemes could replace underfunded defined benefit (DB) pension schemes, and how they could be legislated for and regulated.
If the proposals get the green light, the UK will follow in the footsteps of countries such as the Netherlands, Denmark and Canada, where these schemes are commonplace.
Another significant development this week was the Court of Appeal ruling that carers working ‘sleep-in’ shifts are not entitled to the national minimum wage.
Referring to Royal Mencap Society v Claire Tomlinson-Blake and John Shannon v Jaikishan and Prithee Rampersad (t/a Clifton House Residential Home), the judgment concerns workers who sleep overnight on premises to care for elderly, disabled or otherwise vulnerable people in their own homes.
It was concluded that, rather than actively working, staff on sleep-in shifts were instead classed as ‘available to work’. The national minimum wage is noted to apply only to time when the employee is required to be awake for the purposes of working.
Finally, another noteworthy development this week is that we are delighted to announced Keith Williams, HR services director, employee experience at consumer goods organisation Unilever, as one of our esteemed keynote speakers at Employee Benefits Live 2018 this autumn.
His session on adventures in artificial intelligence will form part of our extensive two-day conference programme on Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 October 2018 at ExCeL London. Book your place today and be part of the conversation.
Kavitha Sivasubramaniam
Editor
Tweet: @kavithasiva_EB