Almost four in 10 healthcare employees want their employer to invest more in private medical insurance (PMI) and wellbeing benefits.
Research conducted by independent research agency Opinium for employee benefits tech provider Zest which surveyed 2,000 UK employees and 872 HR decision makers found almost nine in 10 (87%) workers in the healthcare sector wanted their employer to invest more in employee benefits packages this year.
However, the healthcare sector was found to be the least likely to increase investment – just one in five (18%) healthcare businesses said they were planning to invest more in employee benefits this year.
Eight in 10 (81%) healthcare workers said they wanted more financial support at work, higher than the UK average of 74% for all sectors.
Increased pension contributions proved the most popular benefit among healthcare professionals – 45% of these employees said this was the most important benefit.
However, fewer than one in five (18%) healthcare businesses offered this.
But PMI and wellbeing allowances also ranked among priority benefits for healthcare employees – 38% and 30% cited these as the most important benefits.
Two thirds (62%) of healthcare employees thought their benefits package was inadequate – the highest proportion of any sector.
Under half (48%) thought their benefits package offered good value for money, ranking second last out of all sectors surveyed and only ahead of the education sector where just 42% of employees believed they got value from their benefits.
Healthcare businesses were also found to be at risk of losing out on talent – six in 10 (62%) employees admitted they would leave their current job if another company offered a better benefits package while 38% would consider a switch to another sector.
Just six in 10 (60%) employees in the healthcare sector admitted they knew exactly what benefits they had access to – the second lowest proportion from the research.
This was despite 99% of healthcare businesses believing that employees were aware of the range of benefits that were available to them.
But healthcare employees were also found to be frustrated with the benefits packages on offer to them – just a quarter (26%) said their employer listened to their needs and responded through the benefits on offer, while 56% admitted they did not use the majority of their benefits.
Conversely, it was clear employers understood the importance employees placed on support as nearly all in the healthcare sector (94%) said that a benefits package was one of the first things candidates asked about in an interview.
Matt Russell, CEO of Zest, said: “Healthcare professionals are demanding increased financial support from their employer and aren’t afraid to move elsewhere to get it – even if that means switching to another sector.
“Given the existing pressures on the NHS, a talent drain could have catastrophic consequences.
“Without increased investment in benefits packages and an improved understanding of the support employees are calling for, healthcare organisations are at risk of losing out on talent.
“Currently, it appears that HR leaders across the healthcare sector remain unaware of the apathy many of their employees have when it comes to engaging in their benefits packages – this leads to poor value for money for both employer and employee.”
