Fifty-seven percent of people consider the benefits and perks offered by a prospective employer when deciding whether to take a job. This makes offering employees useful extras such as flexible hours and free gym memberships could entice the best banking and finance talent to your workplace. But what are some of the best employee benefits that will help you attract the best talent? Here’s a list of some bonuses you can add to your compensation packages to help increase acquisition.
Health, Dental, and Vision Insurance
Companies with 50 or more full-time employees have to provide health insurance to 95% of these workers or face expensive penalties from the IRS. That’s the law. But offering new team members a comprehensive insurance plan — perhaps one with low co-pays and a large number of in-network providers — could lure more top talent to your organization. As the banking and finance industry faces staff shortages, especially in banks and credit unions, this extra incentive could attract more qualified and experienced job candidates — even passive ones.
You might also want to throw in dental and vision insurance with your group health plan. Eighty-eight percent of workers would give these benefits “some consideration” when deciding whether to accept a job offer.
Paid Time Off
Giving employees the chance to take time off work for specific reasons without losing money is a highly desirable benefit. Someone might use their paid time off (PTO) for a family emergency, bereavement, vacation, doctor’s appointment, or sickness.
You can determine how much paid time off someone can take in a year or offer unlimited PTO if you trust that person to use it responsibly. Unlimited time off can improve work-life balance, which might result in better performance and productivity in your organization.
Flexible Hours
Flexible hours can also enhance work-life balance for banking and finance employees. This perk allows team members to choose the start and end of workdays rather than conforming to the traditional 9-5. That might allow someone to drop off or pick up their children from school, spend time with a sick relative, or attend a college class.
Like paid time off, flexi-time could improve outcomes in your workplace. Research shows that 43% of people believe flexible working hours make them more productive in their jobs and can even prevent burnout.
Gym Memberships
Offering banking and finance employees free gym memberships helps both them and your organization as a whole. Team members can improve their fitness without worrying about expensive gym fees, and you can benefit from a healthier workforce that performs better in their jobs. That’s because regular exercise can make people happier, smarter, and more energetic — all of which are associated with higher levels of work productivity.
Life Insurance
Eighty-nine percent of banking companies offer employees life insurance coverage — more than the national average of 56%. So job seekers in this industry might expect this benefit from your company if you don’t provide it already. While life insurance group plans can be expensive, premiums are tax-deductible, which will reduce your costs. A generous benefits package that includes this perk might also encourage extremely talented professionals to work for you, benefiting your organization in the long run.
Mental Health Support
Banking and finance are fast-paced and often stressful industries that can cause people to “burn out” and suffer from anxiety and depression. In fact, burnout is one of the biggest threats facing the financial industry right now, resulting in reduced productivity, decreased job satisfaction, and various physical and mental health risks.
So why not include professional mental health services in your benefits package? Employees can talk about any problems they have with a trained counselor and learn how to deal with common job pressures. While this perk can be expensive, it could help you create a happier and healthier workforce.
Career Development
Perks such as free training courses help employees develop new skill sets and further their careers, which can benefit both them and your company. For example, team members can improve soft skills such as time-keeping, communication, and problem-solving and apply them to their current role and future ones.
Upskilling your workforce could be more productive than recruiting new employees in some situations. Training existing team members about different aspects of banking and finance might be quicker than hiring and vetting new workers, resulting in productivity gains for your business.
