Many organizations who were forced into offering remote work arrangements due to COVID-19 have received feedback that employees are happier, more productive, less stressed, and have an overall better work-life balance. With an overwhelmingly positive response, most companies are now planning to continue offering flexible work arrangements after the pandemic subsides.
As employers rethink and adjust to this “new normal,” some have found this to be a paradigm shift from offering flexible work arrangements as an employee incentive and balancing it with human connection, as that drives engagement --- which ultimately drives business results. What new perks can they offer to be more competitive, increase loyalty, and motivate employees to stay engaged?
What budget-friendly perks can you offer remote employees?
If you have substantial funds to allocate for perks, consider offering the following:
Keep in mind that perks should be applicable to all employees, no matter their working location.
For a more modest budget, here are some mid-range perks that are scalable to offer:
Do some homework and find out what employees want. If your workforce is spread out geographically, consider connecting with national brands to be more inclusive. If you offer paid time off, perhaps it's time to revisit your policy to ensure employees are taking time off when they're sick instead of working through it to bank more PTO time.
With the pandemic putting financial strain on both organizations and individuals, it may be more realistic to offer perks that don’t involve an ongoing or significant budget. Consider the following perks that cost little to nothing:
After using employees as a sounding board, you may find out that these are the types of perks that mean the most during these challenging times.
Keep in mind that, if employees will be returning to the workplace, a budget will also be allocated to sanitation and office layout updates. It’s important to communicate all steps and precautions that the organization is taking to protect employees and provide a comfortable and safe workplace setting. That will help provide a bigger picture for benefits.
If you’re wanting to build team cohesiveness while your workforce is mostly remote, consider the following options:
No matter your financial (or pandemic) situation, it's possible to attract, engage, retain, and include employees by revamping your benefits and incentives package to support a flexible workplace.
To learn more, please contact your certified HR expert. Not a current Stratus HR client? Book a free consultation and our team will contact you shortly.
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