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Support Workers with Better Employee Benefits in 2020

Support Workers with Better Employee Benefits in 2020

by | May 6, 2020 | Blog

Support workers with better employee benefits in 2020. Targeting the four key aspects of employee wellness to build a better employee benefits package.

There are four key aspects to overall wellness: mental, physical, financial and social. Employees who score well across the board are more likely to be loyal, engaged and productive, according to the latest employee benefits research by MetLife.

“Now more than ever, it’s critical to understand employees’ needs,” said, Todd Katz executive vice president, Group Benefits, MetLife. “In this time of crisis and beyond, providing a mix of benefits and programs can help mitigate stress, improve employees’ holistic well-being and support them when they need it most – which in turn can help bolster engagement and loyalty from the workforce.”

Support Workers with Better Employee Benefits in 2020

The coronavirus pandemic continues to reshape the working world challenging businesses everywhere to adapt to the new normal. Strategizing how employee benefits can better support workers in a time of crisis is a must. 

This year, MetLife’s 18th annual U.S. Employee Benefits Trends Report considers how resilient employees are when faced with uncertainty and then looks at the important role employee benefits plays in the overall wellness of workers, identifying the perks and programs that matter most.

Financial Wellness Programs

More than half of U.S. employees told MetLife their biggest concern in the wake of the novel coronavirus is their financial health. According to a survey by Freedom Debt Relief:

  • 41 percent of employees are worried about being able to afford to feed themselves and their families.
  • 41 percent report are struggling to make their rent or mortgage payments.
  • 37 percent will miss payments on some bills in the next six months. 
  • 35 percent will use credit cards to pay for groceries.

Over 60 percent of employees say the $1,200 pandemic relief check they received as a part of the CARES Act will not be enough to get through the current economy.

“The coronavirus is clearly contributing to employees’ overall stress, especially as it relates to their financial well-being,” said Katz. “It should come as no surprise that this is particularly true among those with incomes below $50,000, and those in healthcare. Across industries, employers have an opportunity to be a source of support for employees facing unprecedented challenges by offering tools and resources to address their immediate concerns.”

Nearly 80 percent of workers with access to financial wellness programs told MetLife they’re satisfied with the employee benefits their employer offers. 

The best financial wellness programs, like Best Money Moves, are gamified and harness machine learning to guide employees to the resources they need most. If you want to learn more about how Best Money Moves can bring financial wellness to your company download our whitepapers and sign up for a demonstration here.

Mental Health Benefits

Close to 60 percent of employees struggling with mental health said their employer doesn’t offer mental health programs that meet their needs, or that the programs they do offer are too difficult to access or understand. Effective mental health programs can help ease stress, anxiety and depression that can fuel burnout and disengagement at work. 

Flexibility 

There was a trend towards flexible work arrangements long before the coronavirus pandemic began. Now, flexibility has shifted from being a highly sought after perk to a crucial necessity to maintain operations and accommodate workers. 

Assigning reasonable workloads, offering flexible work hours or arrangements and providing sufficient time to address personal needs can mitigate stress, burnout and depression. At the same time, MetLife finds these practices are also top drivers of productivity, engagement and loyalty. 

Over 80 percent of employees believe their employers have a responsibility to address their health and well-being. Employers can leverage the right mix of benefits, perks and programs to better support employees and in turn boost engagement, job satisfaction and retention.

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Returning to Work After COVID-19

Returning to Work After COVID-19

by | Apr 29, 2020 | Blog

Returning to work after COVID-19. Precautions employers should take to protect workers and limit the spread of the coronavirus at work.

Returning to work after the COVID-19 pandemic is going to be a challenge. Without a vaccine available, precautions to limit the spread of the coronavirus at work must be put in place.

Employers will have to systematically disinfect the workplace, adjust the space to allow for social distancing and create a process for responding to employees showing signs of illness in order to create a safe work environment.

Returning to Work After COVID-19

The CDC has released guidelines for employers to follow to limit the spread of the coronavirus in the workplace with three primary goals:

  1. Reduce transmission between employees
  2. Maintain healthy business operations
  3. Maintain a healthy work environment

Reducing Transmission Between Employees

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released guidance on preparing workplaces for COVID-19 with information on how to protect workers from potential exposures. The CDC recommends employers also educate employees on how they can reduce the spread of COVID-19 by taking steps to protect themselves, learning what to do if they get sick and using effective disinfectants.

Maintaining Healthy Business Operations

These are the strategies the CDC recommends for maintaining healthy business operations during the COVID-19 pandemic:

  • Identify a workplace coordinator who will be responsible for COVID-19 issues.
  • Implement flexible sick leave and supportive policies and practices.
  • Assess essential functions. 
  • Determine how the business will operate if absenteeism spikes.
  • Establish policies and practices for social distancing.

Maintaining a Healthy Work Environment

In order to maintain a healthy work environment after returning to work, the CDC suggests:

  • Improving the engineering controls using the building ventilation system to increase ventilation rates or increase the percentage of outdoor air that circulates into the system.
  • Support respiratory etiquette and hand hygiene for employees, customers and worksite visitors. 
  • Perform routine environmental cleaning and disinfection.
  • Perform enhanced cleaning and disinfection after persons suspected or confirmed to have COVID-19 have been in the facility.
  • Take care when attending meetings and gatherings.

Read the CDC guidelines in full for more detailed information on how to implement these strategies in your workplace. 

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Coronavirus 2020: Supporting Employees During COVID-19

Coronavirus 2020: Supporting Employees During COVID-19

by | Apr 21, 2020 | Blog

Coronavirus 2020: supporting employees during COVID-19. Employees are stressed out, disengaged and it’s hard to maintain productivity amidst the coronavirus pandemic.

Employees are less engaged, less productive and less positive about their careers due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a survey by Eagle Hill Consulting. 

More than 40 percent of workers are experiencing burnout, a term used to describe prolonged and intense stress, and over 35 percent of employees don’t think their organization is doing anything to help.

It’s up to employers to re-engage workers and reduce employee burnout, but it won’t be easy. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), more than 60 percent of employers have had a difficult time maintaining employee morale during the coronavirus pandemic. 

Coronavirus 2020: Supporting Employees During COVID-19 Pandemic

How to Tell If an Employee Is at Risk of Burnout

When evaluating employees for risk of burnout look for the most common symptoms:

  • Exhaustion
  • Frustration
  • Forgetfulness
  • Anxiety
  • Inability to keep up with daily tasks

Parents are particularly at risk of burnout during the coronavirus pandemic. Sixty percent of working mothers and fathers already experience burnout. School closings due to COVID-19 have many parents juggling roles as workers, teachers and caregivers all at the same time, heightening their risk of burning out.  

What’s Causing Employee Burnout?

Workers responding to a survey by Eagle Hill Consulting said these are the things that are making them feel burnt out:

  • Workload
  • Lack of work-life balance
  • Lack of communication, feedback and support
  • Time pressures
  • Performance expectations

Flexibility is critical in a crisis. Monitor workloads, consider extensions and check-in on employees frequently to limit burnout and boost morale during the coronavirus pandemic.

How Employers Are Battling Burnout

These are the most common ways employers are managing burnout during the coronavirus pandemic according to Eagle Hill Consulting:

  • 34 percent of organizations are increasing flexibility 
  • 26 percent are improving communication
  • 20 percent are providing mental and physical wellness resources
  • 19 percent are changing goals and targets based on the situation today
  • 18 percent are making workloads more manageable

Most organizations have had to make some changes to continue operating throughout the coronavirus pandemic. Employers who are flexible, communicative and understanding of the challenges employees are facing can limit burnout and maintain a positive work environment.

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Coronavirus: Financial Stress Statistics 2020

Coronavirus: Financial Stress Statistics 2020

by | Apr 15, 2020 | Blog

Coronavirus: financial stress statistics 2020. Recent research focuses on how COVID-19 has negatively impacted personal finances in the U.S.

The coronavirus continues to spread across the U.S. but over 40 percent of Americans are more worried about losing their jobs and making rent than they are about getting sick. 

With the economy at a standstill, financial stress is at an all-time high. Recent surveys have asked Americans to open up about the impact the pandemic has had on their finances. 

Coronavirus: Financial Stress Statistics 2020

How Has the Coronavirus Impacted Financial Stress?

According to research by Freedom Debt Relief:

  • 27 percent of Americans have already experienced a furlough, layoff or job loss because of the pandemic.
  • 56 percent of Americans are concerned about being able to afford to feed themselves and their families.
  • 45 percent are struggling to make their rent or mortgage payments and 36 percent say they are likely to miss a payment in the next six months.
  • 38 percent say they will miss a utility payment within the next six months.
  • 30 percent are likely to miss their health insurance premium or a student loan payment in the next six months.
  • 36 percent anticipate carrying a balance on their credit card for groceries.
  • 21 percent anticipate carrying a balance on their credit card for utilities.
  • 18 percent anticipate carrying a balance on their credit card for TV/Internet.

How Do Americans Plan to Spend Their Check from the CARES Act?

According to research by Crediful:

  • 47 percent plan to spend their stimulus check on groceries.
  • 46 percent plan to spend it on utilities.
  • 42 percent plan to put it in savings.
  • 28 percent plan to spend it on their rent or mortgage.
  • 26 percent plan to spend it on their credit card debt.
  • 16 percent plan to spend it on toiletries
  • 13 percent plan to spend it on health or medical supplies.
  • 10 percent plan to spend it on stocks and investments.
  • 9 percent plan to spend it on student loan debt
  • 7 percent plan to spend it on clothing.

We want to help employees access top quality financial information during this tough time. That’s why we’re offering three months of access to Best Money Moves, our premier financial wellness platform, for free.*

*This offer is available only to companies that are not already customers of Best Money Moves. This offer may be rescinded at any time. Contact sales@bestmoneymoves.com for details or set up a demo here. 

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COVID-19 2020: Managing Employees During the Coronavirus Pandemic

COVID-19 2020: Managing Employees During the Coronavirus Pandemic

by | Apr 8, 2020 | Blog

COVID-19 2020: Managing employees during the Coronavirus pandemic. Dealing with employees who may be sick and making temporary policy modifications.

More than 70 percent of companies didn’t have a crisis management plan in place when the Coronavirus outbreak hit, according to a survey by Blank Rome. Even those who did anticipated natural disasters like floods and fires, but not a global pandemic like COVID-19.

Without an emergency response plan in place, how are employers dealing with things like emergency contact systems, data privacy, defining essential functions, managing employees who become ill and avoiding panicked reactions to negative news?

COVID-19 2020: Managing Employees During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Here are some of the temporary modifications employers told Blank Rome they’ve made in response to the Coronavirus pandemic:

  • We are following CDC guidelines; if an employee is sick we are sending them home.
  • We started specific weekly communications on March 3rd regarding precautionary personal and workplace hygiene, staying home or going home if ill, social distancing. We applied more specific polices on March 13th and formally implemented work from home as well as rotational work assignments.
  • We extended the absence period for returning to work from 3 to 5 days and on a case by case basis in some instances.
  • We have released anyone with symptoms and required doctors notes to return.
  • We’ve requested all employees to get tested and made arrangements for the testing to get done.
  • We are operating on the honor system for absences or modifications and accommodations during this time.
  • We are asking screening questions and are considering temperature checks.

Responding to Employee Testing Positive for COVID-19

Nearly 7 percent of the companies Blank Rome surveyed had an employee test positive for COVID-19 and in response to it:

  • 23 percent of employers converted to remote work for all employees not required to be on-site.
  • 17 percent continued operations with modifications.
  • 3 percent closed the entire worksite where the employee who tested positive reported.

Managing Paid Time Off

Over 40 percent of employers have paid employees who show symptoms of COVID-19 but haven’t been diagnosed or allowed them to use paid time off. Nearly half of businesses that have had to temporarily shut down business operations are still paying workers and more than 20 percent are requiring use of paid time off.

Managing Employee Complaints

Less than 15 percent of employers have received COVID-19-related complaints from employees, but more than 90 percent have required responses that don’t fall within the traditional framework of complaints, including disability discrimination, retaliation and OSHA. Here are some of the COVID-19-related complaints employers have received:

  • Employees requesting shutdown.
  • Employees complaining about lack of sanitizer and masks.
  • Employees frustrated about working remotely.
  • Employees complaining the company failed to act quickly and put inexperienced people in charge of decision making.
  • Employees complaining that there isn’t a policy in place.
  • Employees upset about being required to come into work when they think they should be allowed to stay home during the Coronavirus outbreak.
  • Employees concerned about how matters will be handled.

How employers respond to the Coronavirus pandemic will have a significant impact on business for years to come. It’s crucial to empathize with employee concerns and communicate what the company is doing to protect both employees and business operations.

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