Across industries and geographies, 2024 has been a year of uncertainty—for employers and employees alike. Generally speaking, leading economic indicators are looking good and talk of an impending recession has largely been quelled, yet widespread layoffs across several major employers have workers concerned about their job security.
It hasn’t helped to have the media hyping stories that say Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a “tsunami about to upend the global economy,” threatening the careers of tens of millions of people. For all the fearmongering about AI taking jobs from humans, however, the reality is there aren’t enough people to fill all the jobs. By 2030, more than 85 million jobs could go unfilled because there aren’t enough skilled people to take them. In other words, the War for Talent shows little sign of declining any time soon.
Despite an increase in layoffs and general slowdown in hiring, it’s clear we are still living in an Employee Economy. The demand for talent remains strong and, more than ever, those possessing desirable skills have choices about where and for whom they want to work. For their part, employers are recognizing their single most valuable asset is their people. The truth is no matter how innovative a product or solution, it’s the talent that ultimately drives organizational success.
With so much competition for workers, employers may be in for an uphill climb when it comes to hanging onto the talent they need to solidify the bottom line. Since the pandemic, workers have been on the move — and that trend is continuing. According to Alight’s 2024 International Workforce and Wellbeing Mindset Report, 20% of workers are actively looking for a job with a different company, while nearly 30% are not actively looking but would seriously consider working elsewhere if presented the opportunity. In other words, only about half of employees intend to be with their current employer next year.
The key differentiator — employee benefits
For the vast majority of employees, pay is paramount. That’s not likely to change anytime soon. Among workers who are not actively looking for a job but would consider making a change if an opportunity arose, nearly half say better pay would be their primary reason. However, today’s workforce is motivated by more than a paycheck. They are prioritizing benefits as they decide where they want to work—and whether to stay with their current employer or seek greener pastures elsewhere. Increasingly, workers are not just desiring but expecting employers to offer an array of employee benefits that span physical, mental/emotional, financial, social and professional wellbeing.
The need for such support is abundantly clear in our latest Mindset report, which reveals a workforce in distress. Only 44% report a positive state of wellbeing, down from 51% just one year prior. This decline is found across all measures of wellbeing. Clearly, people are struggling, and they are looking to their employer for support.
When that support is provided, wellbeing numbers soar, with 58% of fully supported employees* rating their overall wellbeing as high, 17 percentage points higher than workers who say they are not fully supported. That sense of positive wellbeing translates into a better employee experience as well. More than half (55%) of fully supported employees rate their experience as great to awesome, compared to 43% of workers who are not fully supported.
Wellbeing benefits fuel retention
When companies prioritize wellbeing, good things happen. Employees who feel positively about their overall wellbeing are happier, healthier, more engaged and productive. They’re also more likely to stick around. Among workers who feel their wellbeing is strong, 75% say they are likely to be with their employer in 12 months, more than double the percentage of those with poor wellbeing (32%), according to Alight’s 2024 Winning with Wellbeing report.
But that’s not all. Fully supporting the workforce in achieving their wellbeing goals strengthens the employee/employer relationship, increasing trust which is crucial to retaining talent. Nearly nine in 10 (88%) people who have high trust in their employer say they are likely to stay with their employer for the next year, compared to 44% with moderate trust levels and 21% with low trust levels. The best way for employers to gain trust is to provide workers with robust benefits, tools and resources to improve their wellbeing.
The link between wellbeing and retention has never been clearer. Companies that prioritize their workforce and support them with health, wealth and wellbeing benefits will emerge victorious in the battle for the human capital that drives innovation and growth. However, employers must focus not only on attracting and retaining the right people, but on building a healthy, thriving, resilient workforce.
As companies strive to provide this much-needed support by increasing the breadth and depth of employee benefits, the cost to the employer is projected to increase 41 to 42 percent by 2026. With cost containment and expense reduction the prime directive in today’s business environment, companies are under tremendous pressure to eliminate programs that aren’t achieving the desired return on investment.
When it comes to supporting employees, however, the answer lies not in cutting benefits, but in turning a necessary expense into a game-changing differentiator.
Winning with Wellbeing
Since the pandemic, our understanding of work has changed, with wellbeing at the forefront of sustaining a robust and dedicated workforce. Adopting a focused employee wellbeing strategy fortifies retention and employee satisfaction.
* “Fully supported employees” represents workers who are enrolled in a health care plan through their employer and have access to personalized support to help navigate health system options and costs, personalized financial management and either a mobile app or a website for health, wealth and wellbeing benefits.
