The bonuses linked to well-being that companies grant is an aspect that is increasingly valued by workers, a trend that accelerated with the pandemic at the local and global level, and that is taking hold in the ‘new normal’.
So much so that it gained weight on the financial compensation of most employees. According to a survey carried out by Cuponstar among 500 companies in the country, six out of 10 people prioritize ’emotional benefits’. Another survey carried out by Eventbrite reached the same conclusions and with the same percentage.
The change in the needs presented by professionals forces companies to improve their attraction and retention strategy, in order to reward talent in a complex context. Globally, more than 40% of companies will seek to improve the well-being of their staff in 2022, according to the Loyalty 360 analysis platform.
Flexibility, time availability to dedicate more time to recreation, subsidized lunch, recreational activities, regular meetings to find out the emotional state of the employee and assistance with medical, psychological and nutritional care are some of the strategies that organizations implemented at the most critical moment of the coronavirus to strengthen the well-being of its workforce and that they plan to continue offering.
With a hybrid work scheme, the benefit programs are reinvented, increasingly focused on the well-being of the employee and their environment, to reconcile work commitment and family life in the search for work-life balance.
“Gym passes, for example, have been transformed into virtual training, yoga, stretching and meditation classes. Physical activity has become necessary to disconnect and move the body. Even today, when gyms are open once more, many companies maintain these benefits,” explains Mariana Amores, Human Resources Manager at Grant Thornton Argentina.
For Federico Carrera, Managing Partner of High Flow-Grupo DNA, the ideal would be for companies to offer a wide range of non-financial compensation so that the collaborator can choose the most convenient for him. “Instead of standardized plans, it is recommended that they be personalized. Just as there are those who are concerned with improving the value proposition for customers, many companies seek to offer each employee an experience according to their needs,” he says.
“64% of our clients have focused more on the physical and emotional health of employees since the Covid-19 outbreak. It is important at this time, both for large and small organizations, to find the right balance between economy and empathy. 38% implemented that they can take a day off, 36% gives them flexibility to carry out activities related to healthy living and 26% added free training of all kinds”, describes Brian Klahr,
The company was born in 2010, from the hands of Klahr and his partner Agustín Perelman as a company for the sale of coupons to the final consumer. Due to the extinction that the business experienced in the face of delivery apps and the changes in habits caused by the health emergency, it became a benchmark regional firm for corporate benefits, with 400 clients, including Techint, Samsung, IBM, DirecTV and Axion Energy.
The platform adapted its proposal so that companies can offer remote benefits to their collaborators, with online purchases and exclusive content. It has more than 2,000 options available in supermarkets, gastronomy, gyms, education, tourism, and entertainment, with 4,000 participating businesses, including major brands such as DIA, McDonald’s, Freddo, Coca-Cola, and Digital House.
“The balance between work and leisure time becomes essential. That is why companies pay more and more attention to what the collaborator demands. In short, an employee who works happily is more productive and contributes to meeting objectives organization,” says Vanesa Boulet, Eventbrite Talent Manager.
In this regard, it highlights that 100% of those surveyed believe that the benefits associated with well-being have a positive impact on their productivity. “In times of crisis, the emotional salary can be relegated. But it is essential that employees feel taken into account. Many times, these actions define whether a person accepts a job offer or stays in a certain position or company through of time,” he stresses.
Companies that added benefits
“We always seek to create work environments where we are valued to achieve our best version. The objective is to accompany all the people in the company so that they can develop, learn and enjoy what they do. We build a differential value proposal aimed at well-being” , says Erica Zamora, vice president of Gente de Quilmes for Argentina and Uruguay.
Among the policies that it adopted, the company offers an agreement with OSDE that allows the entire family group to join without paying a difference -an aspect highly valued at this juncture-, an employee assistance service and an agreement with Gympass and apps with meditation and mindfulness. In addition, he incorporated the ‘Quilmes Week’ -an extra week of vacations-, flexible entry and exit hours, and a day off for his own and his children’s birthdays.
At the family level, it makes gifts such as school kits and gifts for Children’s Day, births, weddings, birthdays and New Year’s. Also, it offers the possibility of accessing products with discounts every month, through a web portal with offers in different items and discounts on the Quilmes electronic sales platforms.
For its part, in 2021, Natura added lunches through food. Before the coronavirus, the employees had the dining room in the offices subsidized. With the pandemic, a digital platform was incorporated where employees can choose their lunches month by month and receive them at home.
“Regarding the work scheme, flexibility in face-to-face or remote mode will be maintained because it is highly valued. A change was proposed that allowed us to broaden our perspective regarding physical work and the possibilities and opportunities that remote work offers us,” he mentions Verónica Marcelo, general manager of Natura.
