UNDERSTANDING AND CHOOSING THE RIGHT VOLUNTARY BENEFITS PLAN

Given that employees typically pay for the cost of these benefits, you may be wondering why this is a good idea. Here are a few reasons why both employees and employers might enjoy such plans.



• Voluntary benefits may allow the employer to offer a much wider range of benefit choices, which can help to attract new employees and retain current ones.
• Adding benefits improves the benefits package without significantly increasing costs to the employer. (The main costs are setup and administration.)
• The employees get convenience and (possibly) better prices for items they may have wanted to purchase anyway. They do not need to search—the tough part is already done.
• It allows employees to pick and choose which benefits they value the most and take advantage of them. It's customizable to employee needs.
• Payment via payroll deductions is convenient for employees, which is a bonus of such a plan.
• Even small businesses can benefit; often, it does not take too many employees to get a group discount.
• When employees have peace of mind, they're more likely to be more satisfied and engaged on the job. (Peace of mind can be the net result of some of these types of benefits, such as life or disability insurance.)
• Adding benefits like these can offset other negative changes, such as increases in health insurance premiums.
• These types of benefits are easy to offer to both full-time and part-time employees because they cost little to the employer.
• These benefits can be offered as enhancements to existing (paid) benefits. For example, if the employer offers life insurance, there could be a voluntary benefit allowing the employee to pay for upgraded coverage.
  

When adding voluntary benefits plans to your organization's offering, consider surveying employees to learn what they value or want to see added as a benefit.

If you decide to offer additional health coverage, make sure you convey that these benefits are not a substitute for the basic health insurance plan.