More than a third (36%) of employers claim the way in which they support the health and wellbeing of their employees is a primary reason people opt to work for them.
This is according to research conducted by Opinium for Towergate Employee Benefits among 500 HR decision makers across the UK in January.
A similar number (35%) cited it as a key reason employees stay with them.
And around 32% stated that the health and wellbeing support they offered helped with the recruitment and retention of key demographics of employees.
Nearly a quarter (24%) of employers polled cited their health and wellbeing package at the top of the list of areas that will increase most in importance at their company in terms of the recruitment and retention of talent.
This ranked above support for mental health (20%) and well above support of financial health (12%), physical health (9%), social interaction (9%) and ESG (8%).
However, a significant 16% claimed their employer does not offer enough health and wellbeing support and that this affects their ability to recruit and retain talent.
But the research also showed almost half (47%) of those surveyed by Towergate Employee Benefits stated that they believed it will be harder to recruit talent, and 44% stated they think it will be harder to retain talent in 2025.
Debra Clark, head of wellbeing at Towergate Employee Benefits, (pictured) said: “Our research shows that recruitment and retention will be big challenges for employers in 2025.
“A real shake up in the way employers go about this is going to be required this year if employers are to find and retain enthusiastic, experienced and productive talent.
“Only if health and wellbeing support is comprehensively targeted and communicated will it meet the demands of its role in recruitment and retention.
“Then it will also achieve so much more in terms of the business as a whole.”
