Employers Should Focus On Employee Rewards

Employers Should Focus On Employee Rewards

Employers can improve staff motivation by implementing constructive reward plans without raising their own costs. And, such a plan could potentially reduce costs if they are exchanged them for conventional 'motivational tactics' such as performance related pay, or bonuses. Any employee faces a number of costs.

Their travel to work each day can potentially involve petrol expenses along with car park fees. They may have left at home or deposited elsewhere their children which will be incurring child-minder fees. And during their lunchtimes or after work, they may take gym classes or work out independently. An employer can focus on these types of costs by firstly quantifying them for their staff than look at introducing a raft of employee benefits safe in the knowledge that they will be of real benefit to staff.

The rewards work both ways with employers reaping their own benefits in increased motivation, staff retention and making themselves a more attractive recruiting proposition. And, there is an added incentive for employers in that they can pretty much outsource most of their reward schemes. Companies such as Enjoy Benefits liaise with employers and allow them to cherry pick the employee benefits with the most utility for their business. And, it's not a case of these being superficial rewards without real savings.

The introduction of a childcare voucher scheme, for example, can make savings of nearly a 1000 per annum for each working parent .This is due to the scheme being based on salary sacrifice with the salary given up being less than what they receive in vouchers as it was given up pre-tax and National Insurance. Third party providers administer this scheme for employers providing them with promotional material to launch the scheme and then use web-based services to liaise with the employer and employees taking advantage of the scheme.

The level of benefit received from childcare vouchers is staggered, since April 2011, according to tax band, but all bands can still make real savings. Apart from childcare, there are numerous other ways employers can cleverly position themselves a reward giver for staff working for them. Corporate gym membership offered as salary sacrifice makes two-fold saving due to the lack of National Insurance Contribution on the amount given up, and via negotiated yearly rates with a provider.

Given the focus on well-being, there are plenty of staff usually wanting to take advantage of this benefit, and a healthier workforce leads to less absenteeism from work. Again, the scheme and promotion can be handled by third party providers with costs still remaining neutral for employers. Such providers offer a raft of other benefits such as company fuel cars.

This leads to staff paying a fixed price for fuel from certain suppliers regardless of weekly price fluctuation. And having saved on getting to work, another attractive employee benefit is cheaper car parking, with third party providers being able to gain corporate deals at many major car parks. It's also not only work-related benefits they can help with, but benefits at home too. Enjoy Benefits, for example, has a deal with Utility Warehouse designed to get the best prices for staff on all domestic untilities which can lead to further substantial savings. Any employer looking to offer rewards in non-traditional ways, namely at no cost to themselves, has never had it so good. With so many companies now operating in the provision of cost-neutral employee benefits, there really has never been a better time for employers to re-examine their reward based culture.

by: Matty Hatton

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