Monthly Archives: February 2022

3 Voluntary Benefits Trends to Watch in 2022

Benefits have always been crucial for attracting and retaining top performers, and voluntary benefits are a great way for employers to round off their offerings. These extra perks allow for more personalization that can help satisfy the unique needs of each worker, especially in today’s multigenerational workforce. Although individual needs vary, some common themes—physical, mental and financial wellness—have surfaced, and employers can help address these pressing issues through expanded voluntary benefits offerings.

A rising number of organizations recognize that voluntary benefits are beneficial to employees and their families—and many come at little to no cost for the employer. This article highlights three voluntary benefits trends to monitor in 2022.

1. Emphasis on Holistic Voluntary Benefits Offerings

The voluntary benefits market has been expanding steadily over the years and will continue to grow in 2022. According to a recent Willis Towers Watson survey, nearly all employers (94%) find voluntary benefits important to their talent and total rewards strategies over the next three years. Back in 2018, just 36% of employers felt that way. It’s expected that more employers this year will offer a wide range of voluntary benefits options to meet the needs of their current and prospective employees.

Dental and vision care continue to be standard voluntary benefits. However, Americans face a different landscape shaped by nearly two years of the coronavirus pandemic. As the pandemic continues to impact workplaces and personal lives, nontraditional offerings like critical illness, hospital indemnity, pet insurance, identity theft and group legal are becoming popular. More employees are looking to protect their health, safety and finances—but might need some help or guidance to get started on their goals.

One of the best perks of voluntary benefits is that they are, in fact, optional, so employees can opt for the coverage that matters most to them. As a result, more organizations may design benefits packages that provide a range of options. Since employees often face unique stressors or challenges, employers can offer a wide array of benefits or services to support their workforces. Supplemental offerings could be precisely what employees need to fill in coverage gaps as the pandemic continues.

2. Increased Financial Wellness Support

Money is a top stressor for employees, and the pandemic has reinforced that fact. Finance-related voluntary benefits have the potential to support employees with much-desired financial guidance and educational resources. Increasingly popular financial wellness benefits include retirement savings plans, safety net insurance, emergency savings funds, student loan repayment, and financial planning or coaching.

When employees experience lower financial stress, employers may see greater employee productivity and morale and lower absenteeism. Economic recovery from the pandemic will take some time, but voluntary benefits could help decrease employees’ financial stress.

3. Expanded Remote Health Services

The pandemic has undoubtedly increased employee stress, depression and anxiety. As a result, many employees need more mental health support than before the pandemic.

On the other hand, employees may have put off preventive care or other health care services during the pandemic.

One way to combat those issues is to help make remote health services more accessible and affordable. To ensure employees receive necessary physical and mental health support, telemedicine or remote health services can help increase accessibility to resources and treatment; they have proven to be a valuable and cost-effective way to receive medical care from the comfort of home. As such, telemedicine is quickly proving to be a game-changer, and employers will want to consider adopting or expanding their current offerings to accommodate it.

Summary

Voluntary benefits are helpful add-ons that can round out any benefits package. They help provide value to employees without raising an employer’s costs, making them powerful tools. Voluntary benefits have helped organizations around the country with the multitude of issues brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Still, those issues—including financial insecurity, mental health and health care access—are likely to remain in 2022 and beyond. Therefore, employers should consider exploring voluntary benefits to round off their current offerings.

WHAT IS WELL-BEING?

In our health- and fitness-focused culture, it can be easy to lose sight of what well-being really encompasses. At its most basic level, well-being refers to feeling good and living in a safe and healthy way. It refers to wellness in all aspects of life, including but not limited to physical health, mental health, social health and financial health.  The concept of well-being can have implications on your overall quality of life, health and happiness.

Learn more about four of the tenants of well-being—physical, mental, social and financial—and how you can focus on improving each area.

Physical Well-being

Achieving a state of physical well-being includes leading a healthy lifestyle, avoiding preventable diseases and conditions, and prioritizing your health. To improve your physical well-being, you should focus on:

• Getting enough exercise—Regularly exercising can improve your fitness level and physical health, reduce your stress (and thereby improve your mental health) and help you keep chronic conditions at bay.
• Eating a well-balanced diet—You’ll never be able to achieve a state of physical well-being if you don’t fuel your body properly. Eat a balanced diet to be well on your way to leading a healthy life.
• Prioritizing adequate sleep—Many Americans fail to get the proper amount and quality of sleep. However, doing this is one of the most important things that you can do for your health. Aim to get at least seven hours every night.
• Avoiding tobacco and alcohol consumption—Tobacco and alcohol can have very negative effects on not just your physical health, but your mental health, too. Avoid or limit your consumption of these substances to improve your physical well-being.
• Obtaining preventive care services—Taking care of your body involves receiving annual checkups at the doctor. These preventive care services can help you detect potential health problems early, allowing you and your doctor to devise a treatment plan as soon as possible.

Physical well-being is tied to mental, social and financial well-being, too, so focusing on improving those other areas of well-being are crucial.

Mental Well-being

According to the World Health Organization, there’s not a specific definition of mental well-being. However, various studies agree that achieving a state of mental well-being includes being able to:

• Realize one’s full potential
• Work productively
• Cope with the normal stresses of life
• Contribute meaningfully to one’s community

Mental well-being includes mental health, but goes far beyond treating mental illness. One main roadblock that people face when it comes to their mental well-being is chronic stress, which can lead to lack of sleep, which, in turn, can exacerbate stress.

While it may not be possible to eliminate all of the stressors in your life, there are plenty of ways to reduce stress:

• Plan and prioritize your most important responsibilities.
• Take breaks away from your workstation to mentally regroup. Consider going for a short walk to re-energize your mind.
• Listen to relaxing music to help you calm down.
• Take time off from work to clear your mind.
• Get enough sleep.
• Exercise and eat healthy.

Social Well-being

The concept of social well-being is one that’s commonly forgotten about, mainly because not many are familiar with it. Of course, there’s a social interaction component to social well-being, which involves forming professional relationships and volunteering in the community. Here are some simple ways to improve your social well-being:

• Volunteering—Giving back to one’s community has been proven to boost your mood. Volunteering can be fun and rewarding, as well as good for team building. There are many different ways to get involved with volunteering.
• Joining a club or sports team—Humans are inherently social beings, and joining a club or a sports team is a great way to connect with coworkers or other people in your community. Even if you’re not a great soccer player or a fantastic chef, joining such clubs or teams will give you the opportunity to learn new skills and make new friends at the same time.

Financial Well-being

Behind work-related stress, financial stress is the next biggest stressor for American adults. Financial instability can even affect your performance at your workplace. Imagine trying to focus on work when you don’t know how you’ll make your monthly car payment, or how productive you’d be if you had a pile of bills waiting at home. These situations illustrate the impact financial wellness can have on job performance and overall well-being.

Getting into the practice of saving will help you become more financially secure. Plan ahead so you have money waiting for you at retirement and so you can afford unexpected costs along the way. With the right preparation, you won’t have to worry when life throws you a curveball. Here are some tips to help you improve your financial well-being:

• Take advantage of an individual retirement account (IRA) or other saving mechanisms.
• Understand the savings options available to you.
• Know the difference between “Roth” and “traditional” IRAs. Pick the account that works best for you and begin saving.
• Set money aside in accounts you can access prior to retirement.
• Speak with a financial professional.

Summary

Focusing on overall well-being instead of just individual facets of wellness is a great way to improve your overall health and happiness. It’s never too late to start on your journey to total well-being.