How employee benefits lead to higher morale
Employee benefits are one of the best ways a company can take good care of its employees. Keeping employees happy is key to the success of a business, as employee satisfaction is tied to aspects such as engagement, productivity, and retention. When a company invests in its people through benefits, it shows the employees that they are appreciated, which has a direct impact on their quality of work and also incentives them to stay at their job for longer.
In this blog, we’ll take a look at employee benefits and morale in the workplace: why both are important, how benefits and morale work together, and which benefits to offer your people.
Why is it important?
Providing good benefits to your team helps with recruitment and retention of qualified employees. In order to stay competitive in an ever-changing job market, companies must be willing to provide employee benefits not only to attract employees, but to keep current ones. This type of investment actually saves time and money in the long-run, as you can retain your high-performing employees and put less time into recruiting and onboarding (and subsequently, the time, materials, and staff needed for these responsibilities) that would result from having to replace them.
On top of this, employees feel appreciated, valued, and rewarded when they receive benefits that are important to them and their families. Benefits increase workplace morale, which ultimately leads to high engagement and productivity.
How benefits and morale work together
Benefits and morale add to a number of aspects, all of which contribute to an overall positive workplace with high employee morale.
Collaboration
High employee morale can lead to more collaboration and team-building in your workplace. When employees are happy, they’re typically more inclined to work alongside their colleagues and create great things for the company.
Retention
It’s not a secret: when employees experience high morale in their workplace, they are more likely to stay with the company for a longer period of time. Providing benefits that are important to your employees will improve employee satisfaction, resulting in higher retention rates. As mentioned earlier, this saves your company from having to spend time and money on recruiting and onboarding new employees in the long-run.
Productivity
Happy employees are productive employees. When you provide benefits and improve morale in the workplace, it leads to an overall sense of satisfaction amongst your people, leading them to be more engaged and productive. Not to mention, studies have shown that companies with higher morale are more likely to be successful!
Employee wellness
Caring for your employees’ health and wellness is important for two reasons: it shows that you value them, and ensures that they’re coming to work ready and able to contribute. With this in mind, it’s good to provide benefits that take care of not only physical but mental health for your team.
Which benefits should I offer to my staff?
In Canada, there are two types of benefits: legislated and competitive benefits. Legislated benefits are mandatory of all Canadian employers, and are regulated by the government.
They include:
Pension contributions
The Canada Pension Plan (CPP) is a mandatory savings plan that all employed Canadians must be a part of. Employers, along with their employees, are required to make contributions to this plan.
Legislated leave and paid time off
In Canada, sick leave and paid time off (PTO) are government-regulated. These leaves and PTO are job-protected; that is, it is the responsibility of the employer to ensure the employee’s position is maintained until they’re able to return to work.
Legislated leaves and PTO include:
Maternity, paternity, and parental leave
These leaves are provided to employees who are pregnant, have recently given birth, have a newborn, or have recently adopted.
Sick leave or critical illness leave
Both of these leaves are generally unpaid, but it is the employer’s responsibility to ensure the employee can return to their job once the leave ends. Several provinces require a certain number of paid sick days for all employees. Critical illness leave can be used when an employee needs to care for a child or adult in their life who has a life-threatening illness.
Vacation time
Canadian employees are generally permitted two weeks of paid vacation leave for every year (12 months) of work.
Competitive benefits, on the other hand, are not required of employers by law. However, these benefits are typically highly sought out by employees and can play a huge part in whether a candidate signs with a company or whether a current employee moves on from a company.
Competitive benefits can include:
- Additional vacation allotment
- Dental and optical insurance
- Subsidized phones and/or phone plans
- Gym memberships
- Office perks
- Flexible working hours
- Professional development opportunities
Get started with Humi
If you’re looking for guidance for your company in the world of benefits, we’re here to help. We have a team of expert Benefits Advisors available to help you navigate your current benefits plan, or to help you design a new benefits plan that works for you and your people. Book a call with our benefits team to learn more.
Looking for more than just help with benefits? Humi is a platform that helps you take care of your employees by organizing not only benefits, but recruiting, onboarding, performance management, payroll, time off, and more, all in one place. Speak with us today to learn how we can help your business.
