Remote Unveils New Study of Most Popular Employee Benefits Employees in 2022 Global HR and payroll company Remote surveyed 10,000 full-time employees across the UK, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the US, revealing the most desirable employee benefits across genders, job roles, industries, and parental status. Flexible working hours are the most important benefit to employees in 2022 Private health insurance is the most important employee benefit in the USA Remote work options are most valued by employees in the Netherlands 63% of all employees want contributions from their employer for their home office setup The rise of remote work has created new opportunities for global talent to work for anyone from anywhere. As a result, companies are facing a greater demand to offer robust, equitable, and compliant benefit packages to attract and retain the best talent around the world. Remote, the leader in global hiring and payroll, has conducted research to discover which benefits are most valued by employees in 2022. To see the full research, please visit: https://remote.com/future-employee-benefits. The top three benefits employees want Whether an employer’s primary aim is to attract top talent or retain it, flexible working hours, company-sponsored retirement plans or pensions, and early finishes on Fridays are the top three perks to consider including in their benefits packages. Most important employee benefits when considering a job move in 2022 Percentage of employees that agree Percentage of employees that disagree Flexible work hours 76.54% 6.25% Company-sponsored retirement plan or pension 74.93% 6.24% Early finish on Fridays 63.86% 10.99% 4-day working week 63.36% 10.62% Family health insurance 62.29% 12.05% Private health insurance 62.18% 11.67% Healthcare cost reimbursements 61.12% 12.32% Paid self-care days or time off for mental health 58.90% 13.21% Miscarriage leave 58.63% 14.48% Private dental insurance 57.67% 13.87% It is crucial for employers who wish to attract diverse global talent to develop customized benefits packages based on what is most valued in each country where they wish to hire. Employees in the US in particular see paid time off for self-care and mental health as very important, as well as private and family health insurance. This is because in the US, the healthcare industry is mostly privatized and the cost of insurance and medical care can be exorbitant. Flexible hours & 4-day working week are the most desired employee benefits Employees who currently have flexible work are less likely to switch to a company without it, and those who do not have flexible work opportunities at their current job are more likely to be attracted to jobs that do offer this benefit. The survey shows that flexible work hours and a 4-day work week are more important to employees who identify as female than those who identify as male. This reinforces the need for employers to offer more flexible options that actively empower their female workforce and support their diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. To what extent do you agree the following should be provided by your workplace? Percentage of male employees Percentage of female employees Flexible work hours 74.15% 78.79% 4-day working week 59.55% 66.96% Private health insurance 59.22% 64.98% Family health insurance 58.00% 66.34% Remote work from anywhere policy 55.86% 57.61% Private life insurance 54.79% 57.88% Paid self-care days or time off for mental health 54.46% 63.09% Private dental insurance 54.46% 60.70% Miscarriage leave 53.26% 63.69% Childcare assistance (employees can pay care expenses for children with pre-tax money) 52.40% 61.38% The state of remote and flexible working in 2022 The importance of remote and flexible working is undeniable, but which employees value these benefits most? Employees with and without children both value flexible work hours Flexible working is the most important benefit to both parents and non-parents, highlighting the importance of allowing all employees the freedom to work in a way that best suits their individual needs. To what extent do you agree the following should be provided by your workplace? Percentage of employees who are parents Percentage of employees with no children Flexible work hours 77.97% 75.05% Company-sponsored retirement plan or pension 75.37% 74.47% Family health insurance 67.56% 56.78% Early finish on Fridays 65.70% 61.93% Childcare assistance (employees can pay care expenses for children with pre-tax money) 65.11% 48.56% 4-day working week 65.08% 61.57% Private health insurance 64.25% 60.01% Healthcare cost reimbursements 63.31% 58.83% Miscarriage leave 63.00% 54.06% Paid self-care days or time off for mental health 61.26% 56.43% Employees in almost every job function want flexible work hours, with HR and IT employees wanting this the most Flexible working is seen as the most important benefit for employees in every job function except production and other roles, with 78.74% of HR professionals and 78.07% of IT professionals seeing the benefit as important. Employee job function Percentage of employees that agree flexible work hours should be provided in the workplace HR 78.74% IT 78.07% Finance and Accounts 77.55% Sales 76.88% Production 73.48% Marketing 73.30% Advertising 68.02% Employees in the Netherlands value remote work the most Dutch employers are more used to their staff adopting a fully-remote or hybrid working model. Even before the pandemic, the Netherlands maintained a highly flexible working culture. The UK, Germany, and U.S. follow behind the Netherlands. Remote work is seen as less important to employees in France, whether offered partially or all of the time. Country Percentage of employees that agree it is important to work for a company allows full-time remote working Percentage of employees that disagree it is important to work for a company allows full-time remote working Netherlands 53.35% 17.80% UK 46.65% 26.85% USA 45.60% 25.00% Germany 44.70% 24.15% France 32.90% 33.95% The best wellness benefits for employees across Europe and the US Across all of the 10,000 employees we surveyed, healthy food in the office, meal deliveries, or meal stipends, as well as time off work each month for mental health improvement, were seen as the most important wellness benefits. Overall most important employee wellness benefits Percentage of employees that agree Percentage of employees that disagree Healthy food in the office, home deliveries, or meal stipends 61.03% 13.82% Hours off every month specifically for mental health improvement 61.02% 13.15% Confidential paid therapy or coaching 53.02% 17.22% Physical therapy / massages 50.97% 20.00% Gym memberships 50.16% 19.86% Virtual mindfulness sessions 40.55% 24.72% Virtual Yoga sessions 33.50% 32.57% When we look at each country separately, our research shows that in France, the UK, and the USA, access to hours off work each month for mental health improvement is the most important employee wellness benefit for companies to offer. However, in Germany and the Netherlands, employees see healthy food in the office, home deliveries, or meal stipends as the most important. According to Nadia Vatalidis, VP of People at Remote, “While the need for mental health and wellness benefits is more apparent than ever, the need has always existed. The pandemic simply brought it to light and helped us start these conversations in the workforce. Showing your employees that you care about their wellness starts with flexible work and paid leave policies. But more than that, you must consider what tangible resources you can offer to your team, like local therapy or coaching services.” ”. Most important employee wellness benefits by country France Germany Netherlands UK USA Hours off every month specifically for mental health improvement 65.55% 57.75% 58.15% 61.55% 62.10% Confidential paid therapy or coaching 53.35% 46.00% 55.55% 55.10% 55.10% Healthy food in the office, home deliveries, or meal stipends 70.15% 62.95% 66.55% 52.75% 52.75% Virtual mindfulness sessions 42.55% 30.80% 38.30% 47.25% 43.85% Gym memberships 57.45% 49.50% 53.75% 44.10% 46.00% Physical therapy / massages 61.15% 53.15% 50.90% 43.00% 46.65% Virtual Yoga sessions 42.40% 28.85% 31.50% 32.35% 32.40% Women are most interested in having time off for mental health in their employee wellness packages For male employees, the most important wellness benefit is healthy food in the office, home deliveries or meal stipends, according to our research. However, female employees are generally most interested in having time off of work specifically to focus on their mental health. Employers with predominantly female workforces or those interested in improving their DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) practices should take special note. Most important employee wellness benefits by gender Percentage of male employees that agree Percentage of female employees that agree Healthy food in the office, home deliveries, or meal stipends 60.70% 61.34% Hours off every month specifically for mental health improvement 56.97% 64.84% Gym memberships 51.49% 48.90% Physical therapy / massages 50.65% 51.27% Confidential paid therapy or coaching 50.36% 55.53% Virtual mindfulness sessions 38.56% 42.43% Virtual Yoga sessions 31.66% 35.24% Parents care more about having healthy food included in their wellness packages than employees with no children While access to healthy food in the office, home deliveries, or meal stipends is the most important aspect of a wellness program for both parents and non-parents alike, it’s particularly desired by employees who have children. This perk helps ensure that employees and their families are eating well and encourages them to take breaks for lunch and snacks. Most important employee wellness benefits by parental status Parent No Children Healthy food in the office, home deliveries, or meal stipends 64.92% 56.96% Hours off every month specifically for mental health improvement 63.47% 58.46% Confidential paid therapy or coaching 56.45% 49.44% Physical therapy / massages 53.98% 47.82% Gym memberships 53.53% 46.64% Virtual mindfulness sessions 45.88% 34.98% Virtual Yoga sessions 38.72% 28.04% Top employee training benefits in 2022 In our survey of 10,000 full-time employees in France, Germany, the Netherlands, the UK, and the US, technical courses or training for skills growth in specific work fields emerged as the most important. Most important employee training benefits Percentage of employees that agree Percentage of employees that disagree Technical courses or trainings for growing skills in my specific work field 74.97% 6.21% Leadership courses or training to help employees advance their careers 71.42% 7.13% Software courses or training (Microsoft Office, Google Suite, video conference tools like Zoom or Teams, engineering training, design tools, etc.) 70.28% 7.69% Remote work communication courses or training 61.28% 11.74% Remote work specific leadership courses or training 59.75% 12.14% Diversity and inclusion courses or training 57.84% 13.95% Women value training more than men do, especially leadership training Of the 10,000 full time workers we surveyed, every type of training we asked about was found to be more important to employees who identify as female, than to employees who identify as male.The most important training-related benefit for both men and women is the opportunity to take part in technical courses or training for skills growth in their specific field, with 77.59% of females agreeing that it’s important compared to 72.19% of men. Most important leadership courses or training courses to help employees advance their careers by gender Percentage of male employees that agree Percentage of female employees that agree Technical courses or trainings for growing skills in my specific work field 72.19% 77.59% Leadership courses or training to help employees advance their careers 68.26% 74.40% Software courses or training (Microsoft Office, Google Suite, video conference tools like Zoom or Teams, engineering training, design tools, etc.) 67.89% 72.54% Remote work communication courses or training 60.02% 62.47% Remote work specific leadership courses or training 59.32% 60.16% Diversity and inclusion courses or training 52.67% 62.72% Offering training to help employees grow their skills has benefits for both employees and their employers, as staff will benefit from greater job satisfaction and opportunities to advance, while employers will see better work output and increased staff retention. Employees in France value training for skills growth more than those in Germany, the Netherlands, the UK, and the USA Employees in every country we surveyed agreed that technical courses or training for growing skills in their specific work field is the most important, although French employees view this benefit as more important than those in any other country we surveyed, with 79.15% stating it is important to them. 62% of employees want their employer to at least partially fund their home office set up, with employees in the Netherlands wanting this the most Across all of the employees we surveyed, 62.73% say that it’s important that monitors, desks, chairs, and other equipment needed for remote work are paid for at least partially by their employer. Overall importance of employers financing at least part of a work from home office set up Percentage of employees that agree Percentage of employees that disagree Agree 62.73% 12.45% From a regional perspective, financing for a home office setup is important to almost 70% of employees in the Netherlands compared to just over half of employees in the US. Country Percentage of employees that agree Percentage of employees that disagree Netherlands 68.00% 10.30% France 67.15% 10.55% Germany 64.75% 11.45% UK 61.20% 12.95% US 52.55% 17.00% Post navigation Public sector workers continue to take more sick leave than those in the private sector. More than three quarters of Gen Z employees consider job move, seeking better benefits and wellbeing support
