Employee Benefits poll: Almost half (48%) of employers said they will not need to change their employee benefits approach as a result of the national insurance contribution (NIC) increase, according to a survey of Employee Benefits readers.
One-fifth (22%) of employer respondents said they would need to change their employee benefits approach as a result of the NIC increase, while 30% said they were unsure.
In April, employer NICs increased from 13.8% to 15%, while the level at which they start paying NICs reduced from £9,100 to £5,000 per year.
Last month, Employee Benefits reported that 61% of small to medium-sized employers (SMEs) will change their approach to insurance-based employee benefits following the employer NIC increase, according to research by Canada Life.
The insurance and financial services firm surveyed 550 HR decision-makers at micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, with one to 249 employees.
Of those which had organised changes, more than a third planned to boost awareness and engagement of the benefits provided, rather than reduce provision. One-fifth (23%) intended to make benefits work harder to raise awareness of what is available.
Chris Morgan, head of product and proposition strategy, protection at Canada Life, said: “Our findings show that under increasing cost pressures, many SMEs are reviewing the employee benefits they provide to find savings. We know as an industry what a positive impact employee benefits can have on financial, physical and emotional wellbeing. It’s important that insurers and advisers work together to demonstrate this value and bring it to life for SMEs, so they can see why continuing to invest in employee wellbeing should remain a business priority.”
