Page 20 - BusinessWest June 23, 2021

cases, are augmenting those benefits “ every stage of their careers by provid-
Some older employees might be
sandwiched between taking care of
their children and their parents at the
same time, while others are looking at
”
about their personal finances, it affects their productivity at work,” he said, pointing out that financial wellness is a benefit that can help employees at
with employee-assistance programs,” she noted.
A survey released in March by America’s Health Insurance Plans reported that 56% of employees said their telehealth and mental-health ser- vices are more valuable now than they were a year ago, before COVID-19.”
Offering wellness programs as a benefit is another trend that has gained popularity in the last several years. “Employers are adding or increasing benefits around wellness, nutrition, stress management, and other areas,” Wise said.
In addition to health wellness, Leary
their planning needs for retirement.
ing guidance tailored to their individu- al needs.
“It’s a chance to help younger employees get off to a good start and to check in with older Millennials, now approaching their 40s, about retire- ment planning and the telehealth ben- efit they can access,” Leary explained. “Some older employees might be sand- wiched between taking care of their children and their parents at the same time, while others are looking at their planning needs for retirement.”
Because employees have so many different needs, communication around benefit offerings becomes essential. As COVID disrupted so many other norms, it also caused significant changes in benefit communications. But in this particular case, Miller said, the change was an improvement.
For years, the model for enrolling employees into a company’s ben-
efit plan involved on-site meetings and speaking directly with as many employees as possible to make sure all their questions and concerns were addressed. Miller said the strong in- person presence continued even after the actual enrollments were done online.
“We’re doing many of our open- enrollment meetings now on Zoom,” he said. “One advantage is that you can gather employees no matter where they are for the live presentation,
and they can ask questions, either by shouting them out or using the chat box.”
For employees who may be on vaca- tion or traveling, the Zoom meeting
is recorded and uploaded to a video- sharing platform like YouTube.
“Lots of people want to discuss their benefit options with their spouse,” Miller said. “Now they can, because everyone can access the presentation whenever they want.”
Miller said the video gives employ- ers a tool they can use for the entire plan year. “When a new hire comes in, they can be directed to the link and lis- ten in on the entire employee-benefit presentation. The video approach was one of the few positive developments that resulted from adjusting to COVID concerns.”
Sometimes, a new employee benefit can emerge from a catastrophe. At the onset of COVID, Leary said, employers were frantically setting people up at home just to keep their businesses in operation.
“Several months later, they began seeing the benefits of having peo-
ple work from home,” Leary said. “While many are discussing a hybrid approach, where employees split their time between the office and home, working from home to some degree is now undeniable.”
Because his business lends itself to working remotely, Miller said his
Benefits
Continued on page 46
PATRICK LEARY
said employers are increasingly offer- ing financial wellness programs as a benefit.
“If an employee is stressed out
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