Strategies for Addressing Employee Hiring & Retention

By: Bill Passarotti, Senior Vice President, HUB International Northeast

Employee retention is a serious issue that employers across all industries are facing today and as businesses continue on the road to recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, a labor shortage threatens the progress. Worker shortages have been prevalent during the pandemic; with many employees stating they won’t return to their former jobs, due to low pay, a lack of benefits and stressful work, according to one survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.* However, employee benefits, health insurance and retirement benefits in particular, are a useful strategy for businesses when it comes to attracting and retaining employees.

Consider the following when designing your plan:

• Understand employees, and what they want and need from benefits. Persona analyses from HUB can provide insight into employees, helping customize benefits that will energize recruitment and retention.

 

• Offer value. Because limited medical plans are voluntary, employees won’t bite if there’s no value in the plan. A limited medical plan needs to offer access, cover preventative services like mental health and address gaps in care.
  
  
• Emphasize employee communications. A third-party vendor can handle administrative tasks like integrating plan management with payroll systems and managing COBRA, but not necessarily employee communications. Employers need to make sure their vendor offers strong communication and education capabilities, so employees will know the value in the limited medical plan and will actually sign up.

 

• Keep in mind that retirement plans are important to retention and financial wellness. Retirement benefits like the 401(k) are important drivers of recruitment and employee retention because they uniquely incentivize long-term employment – especially when offered with an employer match.
  
  When employees know that their company takes an interest in securing their financial futures, they’re more likely to stick around and put in their best work. A 401(k) retirement plan helps recruit and retain quality employees. It enriches the organization’s benefits offering and represents the employer’s interest in helping employees take control of their retirement. Tax-deferred growth for savings also makes 401(k) plans an efficient way for employers and employees alike to invest for retirement.

 
Benefits can help manage the labor gap and attract long-term staff. Work with your insurance advisor to offer a strategic and competitive package and consider retirement planning when it comes to long-term retention.

CIANJ member, Bill Passarotti, currently serves as Senior Vice President with leading global insurance brokerage, HUB International. Based out of Summit, NJ, Bill works with businesses in a wide variety of industries on custom-tailored, comprehensive risk & insurance solutions. He can be reached at 908-​666-6200 or [email protected].

*Business Insider, “A third of former hospitality workers won’t return to the industry during the labor shortage because they want higher pay, better benefits, and a new work environment,” July 8, 2021.

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