Flexible Benefits: Adapt to your employees’ needs
5 de May, 2022
Organizations are made up of very different people. People of different ages, with different lifestyles, interests and needs. And this diversity leads people to value different aspects when it comes to compensation for their work and the conditions offered by companies. This is where flexible benefits come in. Find out with us what they are and why they are a key element in attracting and keeping talent in companies.
What are flexible benefits?
Flexible benefits are a complement to financial remuneration and aim to guarantee employees access to certain goods and services that are useful to them. We’re talking, for example, about meal allowances, support for education and training expenses, health expenses, transportation and mobility expenses, among others. These benefits allow companies to have a more attractive compensation policy without relying solely on salary increases (and the costs that this entails). For employees, flexible benefits maximize the net value they receive and, therefore, the income available to cover certain expenses is greater.
Why bet on flexible benefits?
The main premise of flexible benefits is their ability to adapt to the reality of different workers. Each company needs to understand the needs of its employees and the stage of life they are in. For example, younger people probably value greater liquidity for training, transportation or gym expenses. But they probably don’t value benefits related to paying for childcare because they don’t have children yet. So, in the case of startups where the workers are generally of a younger age group, it won’t make as much sense to provide this benefit. On the other hand, older people may value benefits related to support for health expenses, nursing home costs, life insurance or retirement savings plans, for example. In addition to flexibility in the type of benefits awarded, companies also have the freedom to choose the amount offered, as well as the format of the vouchers (in card form, 100% digital voucher, etc.).
Examples of flexible benefits
There are countless examples of flexible benefits that your company can offer its employees. The choice, as you know, should be based on the actual needs of the workers. But some of the most common benefits are:
- The payment of meal allowances in the form of social vouchers (with tax benefits for your company and your employees, they provide greater liquidity than cash payments).
- Childcare vouchers that help cover the costs of crèches, nurseries and ATLs, for example (useful for employees with young children).
- Vouchers to support education and training that can be used in schools, universities, study centers, stationery and bookstores or other similar places (these benefits can be used by the employee themselves or to support education costs for school-age children).
- Benefits linked to the promotion of health and well-being that include medical consultations and examinations, support for the payment of medicines, payment for nursing homes or others (and which may include other members of the employee’s family);
- Support for employee mobility through the allocation of a company vehicle or transport tickets (thus supporting the costs employees incur when commuting to work).
Offering these or other flexible benefits to your company’s employees improves your EVP (Employee Value Proposition). And this can have a very significant impact on their satisfaction and motivation, as well as on attracting human capital. Therefore, regularly assess people’s needs and adapt your company’s benefits policy accordingly. Employees will feel more appreciated, satisfied and involved!