Introduction

Every employee remuneration package has two parts. The first part, which is generally seen as being the most important, is the ‘cash’ you pay your employees to do the job. The second part is the raft of ‘non-cash’ items ranging from extra holiday entitlement through health insurance and company cars to gym membership and flexible working times. This second part is often referred to as the ’employee benefits’ package’ and, although it’s sometimes seen as the icing on the cake, if it’s cleverly put together it can have real pulling power.

As an employer you have a legal duty to provide some basic employee benefits, for example, holiday entitlement and pension scheme membership are statutory requirements, but you can enhance these if you feel that doing so is going to be a worthwhile investment. You are also free to offer anything else you believe will help recruit and retain the staff you need. Critical illness cover, life cover, staff discount schemes, health insurance, dental care, childcare provision, flexible hours, home working, dress-down days, company cars and gym membership are all commonly offered employee benefits that are positively received.

While some of these benefits, for example additional holiday entitlement, staff discount schemes and home working, are arranged on an in-house basis, others are products provided by a third party. Pension scheme membership, critical illness cover, income protection and private medical insurance are employee benefits you’ll need to source from an external provider – but how do you go about choosing one? Ideally, you need impartial advice from an independent expert who knows what’s available across the entire market.

A longer working life coupled with greater expectations, easier geographic movement and an end to the jobs-for-life culture has resulted in a more fluid job market; today’s employees are more demanding in what they expect from an employer and more promiscuous in their careers. In today’s workplace, many employee benefits’ packages are fine-tuned and micro-managed to the extent that individual employees are sometimes asked to specify exactly what they want so that a unique, tailor-made package can be created, just for them.

Although employee benefits are sometimes seen as the icing on the cake, the reality is that they can form a significant part of the remuneration package; in fact some estimates suggest their value accounts for up to 40% of the cost of employing staff. Having the right staff is essential to the success of your organization so there’s a lot at stake – and at that level of investment, it’s worth making sure you really do get it right.

How can One Financial Solutions help you?

As a firm of independent financial advisers we can provide you with impartial advice to help you design and create an employee benefits’ package with a competitive edge; one that can make a real difference both to who you recruit and who you retain.

We’ll help you plan an appropriate strategy, recommend the best products from across the whole of the financial services’ market and help build and develop the package you need. If you already have an employee benefits’ package, we’ll review it and recommend changes we think could turn it into something hard to refuse. We can provide an annual review to ensure your employee benefits’ package remains fresh and competitive, grows in value as your employees’ careers develop and stays within your budget.

So, if you’re looking for help with any aspect of your employee benefits’ package, please call us on 020 3714 9565 or ask us to call you by sending an email to admin@onefinancialsolutions.co.uk.