"We urge employers to encourage utilisation of benefits to get the best value from them."
- Debra Clark, Head of Wellbeing at Towergate Employee Benefits
Of those surveyed (500), 36% of employers only direct staff to health & wellbeing support upon request, relying on them knowing support is available and feeling able to reach out. Overall, 55% of employers take a passive approach to encouraging staff to use health & wellbeing support.
Whilst 32% said they promote support via company transcripts, Towergate Employee Benefits believes there’s more work to be done to ensure staff know where to look before, during, and after experiencing ill-health or injury.
Positively, 34% of employers have assigned health & wellbeing champions to promote the support available. 40% said they’re improving access to support by investing in apps or digital platforms, but it’s essential that these routes are promoted, and engagement is tracked. Mixed-media campaigns to encourage staff to utilise health & wellbeing support are well received. 30% organise in-person wellbeing-focused events, 27% offer webinars, and 27% fund regular promotions.
26% of employers recruit advisers to assist with organising these events; advisers can encourage employees to use health & wellbeing support by providing wellbeing calendars and access to online & offline assistance.
“Our research shows that employers are often taking a passive approach to encouraging the use of benefits. We would encourage employers to proactively work to keep support front of mind and ensure that employees know where to find assistance when it’s needed. Otherwise, the benefit spend will be wasted,” warned Debra Clark, Head of Wellbeing at Towergate Employee Benefits.
“The effectiveness of health & wellbeing support is often evaluated by how much it’s used, but it’s possible to have amazing benefits that are underutilised when access isn’t made easy or promoted. We urge employers to encourage utilisation of benefits to get the best value from them,” she concluded.
