How to Manage Workforce Demands and Enhanced Benefits

Whether you call it the great resignation, the migration or retirement, employers are trying to win the war for talent in a tough labor market. There are worker shortages in industries like manufacturing, where other industries like healthcare are facing burn out, while still others have a decentralized workforce, with recent data showing 75% of employees saying they do not want to return to work onsite full-time.

All of these factors requires employers to think differently about their benefits strategies. It’s important to understand how flexible working arrangements, contract or gig workers, additional part-time staff or helping existing staff increase their skills can solve talent constraints. Understanding workforce demands in the post-pandemic era means providing benefits that speak to the needs of the changing labor force, and that brings us to the second reality: Enhanced Benefits.

Employees want, and as some of my connections have experienced, expect, personalized benefits more than ever. Employees are focused on meeting their specific needs from supplemental benefits to tuition reimbursement and everything in between. Leave of absence and paid-time-off programs are shifting to accommodate varying family/household structures. Basic coverage for all is being replaced by family-friendly offerings, unlimited paid-time-off, and more inclusive coverage with mental health as a focus. Nearly one-third of U.S. employees have left a job due to caregiving responsibilities. And yet, 72% of employees who balance work and caregiving think their employer could be doing more to support them. Understanding and acknowledging the dynamics within your multigenerational workforce is essential to supporting employees where they seek it.

While there is more we can unpack in these two themes, I’ll leave you with this thought: These new realities or trends are putting financial pressure on companies to remain competitive. The challenge is the balance of remaining fiscally responsible and creating a flexible package that meets these new demands. Please reach out to me at [email protected] with any thoughts, comments, or questions.