The Missing Employee Benefit: Communication.
Written by Charlotte Dadd, Head of Employee Engagement and Marketing, The Ink Group
Organisations are investing more than ever in employee benefits, and in addition to a workplace pension, it’s commonplace for life assurance, employee wellbeing programmes (EAP), discount platforms and healthcare insurance to be part of the standard employment package. Yet, according to the CIPD's latest Reward Survey, around one in five UK employers (22%) have no clear objectives for the employee benefits they offer. And despite this significant investment, employee engagement with benefits remains low - not because the benefits themselves aren't valuable, but because employees don't know what they have, how to access it or when to use it.
It’s not that organisations fail to communicate benefits. It’s just that it’s often at the wrong time, at the start of the employee lifecycle. During a new starter's first week they're bombarded with policies, passwords, introductions and mandatory training. Benefits are just another page in an employee handbook that is rarely opened again, if ever. Months later, when someone needs to access details of a benefit, they've forgotten it even exists, let alone how to access it.
Understanding when people use, access and want to know about their benefits is key to improving engagement and communication. It’s rarely during a Tuesday morning Teams call. It’s after work, at the weekend or during annual leave. An injury, illness or accident. A poorly child that needs a same-day GP appointment. The retirement planning conversation during a long Sunday lunch at the pub. The emergency dental appointment for a chipped tooth after lunch. These are the moments when benefits matter most—and they’re at the point of need.
Ironically, employers can create another problem by offering too many overlapping services. An EAP, health cash plan, income protection and private medical insurance may all offer a virtual GP, mental health support, counselling and wellbeing advice. Employees are left wondering which one to use. Faced with too much choice, many will simply do nothing.
If the employee handbook during induction isn’t the start and end of benefits communication, then what is the best way to ensure that your employees know what’s on offer? The answer is to tailor communications to your workforce, workplace locations and the way people actually work. Support this with consistent, year-round communication that reinforces key messages and makes benefits easy to access both inside and outside work.
Email is only one communication channel - and it only works for employees who regularly access it. For example, employees out on the road might benefit from a simple benefits card stored under the sun visor of their work vehicle or kept in the pocket of a work uniform. Old school, but instantly accessible. Other ideas include posters on toilet doors, in person or online sessions for all new joiners, and regular line manager benefits training.
You might question whether any of this really matters. After all, if the benefits are available, isn't that enough?
Probably not.
Employees who access healthcare earlier are more likely to return to work sooner, reducing both absence and associated costs. With Statutory Sick Pay now payable from day one, helping employees get the right support quickly also makes financial sense.
Better communication also improves the return on investment from the benefits you've already purchased. Employees who value their benefits are more engaged, more likely to stay with the organisation and less likely to leave, reducing recruitment costs and improving productivity.
If you'd like support creating communications that employees actually engage with, Nutshell, The Ink Group's creative agency, can help. Because the best employee benefits don't just exist. They're understood, remembered and used. And that starts with communication.