The Future of Benefits: Change Is on the Horizon

BY Christina Cook | May 02, 2023

Over the past few years, employers have relied heavily on enhanced benefits packages to attract and retain a productive workforce. But this year, with an economic slowdown, and a return to a semi-traditional workplace, 95% of HR and benefit leaders are focused on recalibrating their company’s benefit strategies.

Jess Marble, the director of Care.com for Business, kicked off her session at From Day One's April virtual conference by noting that “The biggest theme of the future of benefits this year, is that change is coming.”

Marble should know, as the stated mission of Care.com for Business is to support every working caregiver with accessible, affordable, and customizable family care benefits.

During her talk, Marble shared new research from the 2023 Future of Benefits Report about the primary goals of HR leaders in 2023, the business impact of investing in employees and families, and how businesses and the government can make childcare more accessible for working families.

Of the businesses that are recalibrating their benefits’ strategies in 2023, 47% say that it includes trimming some employee benefits. In industries like food and hospitality, retail, manufacturing, and construction, the average is even higher.

Specifically, Marble said, “companies are pulling back more on what we call boutique benefits, like one-off specialized programs, including fitness benefits like gym memberships.”

Employers are cutting back on all types of benefits, but the impact of those cuts vary dramatically. Eliminating health and fitness discounts, for example, is likely to have minimal impact on costs and worker retention. In contrast, adjustments to family care benefits have a big impact on both, which is why investments in child and senior care remain relatively strong. Marble said, “The focus here is on the strategy of recalibration, with the selective trimming and reallocating of funds rather than complete elimination.”

Jess Marble, the director of Care.com for Business (company photo)

So, who are business leaders designing these benefits packages for?

Marble said, “We're seeing from the data that most employers are prioritizing their full time, salaried, corporate employees, over their frontline, hourly employees, despite the fact that 58% of US workers are non-exempt.”

In the retail industry, which is highly dependent on hourly employees, 46% of the survey respondents said that their benefits strategy focused on professional, knowledge based, hybrid employees. In the food and hospitality industry, 58% of the survey respondents said they concentrate on the needs of professional, knowledge based, office employees.

But, an interesting statistic from this year’s report is, in 2023, 73% of the American workforce is a working caregiver.

Hourly and frontline workers need the most in terms of child and senior care benefits, and these workers also have the most at risk to lose with sparse income without the support of their employer. Marble said, “If productivity is a top concern for HR and business leaders this year, it's going to require leaders to take a closer look at family care benefits in particular.”

Marble suggested that companies can measure the direct business impact of the benefits it chooses to keep by considering accessibility, quality, and affordability.

She said, “More than one in six Americans are already a caregiver for the elderly, and 70% of these caregivers suffer work related difficulties.”

In the Future of Benefits survey, 69% of female job seekers said that they'd be more likely to choose an employer who offered childcare benefits. 83% of women and 81% of men said that such benefits would play an important role in helping them decide whether to stay with their current employer or not.

When employees provide childcare, it's estimated that job turnover can decline by 60%, and that can result in significant cost savings. Employers are starting to recognize the positive impact of family care benefits in the workforce and are recalibrating their packages to support those strategies and spend accordingly.

Despite this, some business leaders are holding off on expanding benefits because they want to know what government policy will be. But many employers are choosing to be more proactive, and are lobbying state and federal government to be their partners in addressing family care.

Overall, employers are taking advantage of the state and federal support that’s available. Marble said, “96% of benefits leaders are aware of the employer provided childcare tax credit, and 75% say that they use it. But of those that don't use the tax credit, nearly 90% say that they would use it if it was broadened to include more types of childcare. The fact that 68% of our respondents favor flexible childcare benefits, adds fuel to support the notion that employers would welcome an expansion of the current tax credit.”

For businesses that want to get started on the recalibration of benefits, Marble said, “A great way to begin is to ask employees about the distractions that they have in daily life. What are their needs for major life events? And whenever I am asked this question, I like to remind employers that life happens continuously.”

Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, Care.com for Business, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight.

Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas, TX, where she covers a variety of topics, with favorites including Art, Film, and live Theatre. Her work can be seen on Rawckus.com, RedDirtNation, and DallasArtBeat.com. Christina is also a creative writer. Her children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a 2017 regional bestseller.

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