When your employees are at the office, it’s easier to know what benefits they want. You see them every day, and can either observe what they need, or talk to them about the benefits they want.
But what if your team isn’t at the office? What if you’ve got an entire team of remote workers?
This is a predicament that many companies find themselves in. With a lot of the workforce now working from home (or wherever else they like), employers have to keep up and make changes to the benefits that they offer in order to retain top talent.
As an established development outsourcing company with over 11 years of experience, we at CoDev know just how important it is to offer the right benefits, especially to remote employees. Below we’ve listed some of the top benefits that remote workers expect, and some nice-to-have ones that could set your company apart.
Must-Have Benefits
While remote workers may seem to require less due to the fact that they can work from home or anywhere else, they still expect certain benefits as much as any other office-based employee. These include:
- Subsidized insurance plans – Work can cause both physical and mental health problems, especially for remote workers who mostly stay at home. A subsidized insurance plan is therefore a necessity, and provides a great sense of financial security for your employees. At CoDev, your remote team members get a comprehensive health insurance plan that covers hospitalization, outpatient procedures, dental procedures, and even psychiatric consultations. Our insurance plan also offers coverage for two added beneficiaries directly related to the employee.
- Paid time off – Remote workers may not be at the office, but they do still need some time off. Here at CoDev, your remote team members get an ample amount of paid days off, so they can take a breather once in a while, come back to work refreshed, and achieve a better work-life balance.
- Learning and development opportunities – A recent survey we conducted among IT professionals shows that most of them prefer to work in companies that offer plenty of learning and development opportunities. The same trend was present in LinkedIn’s 2019 Workforce Learning Report, where 94% of employees said they would stay with a company longer if there was an investment in learning. For remote employees, this means getting the means and access to online courses, virtual conferences, meetups, and more – something that the team members here at CoDev have long been accustomed to.
- Workstation support – Not all employees have the hardware and software they need to be able to work remotely. You need to make sure that your employees have all the amenities they need to get their job done. At CoDev, we do this by providing team members with high quality hardware and software, a monthly stipend to cover utility needs, and an IT support team that is ready 24/7 to support them at a moment’s notice.
Nice-to-Have Benefits
There are plenty of other benefits you could offer to your remote employees. Here are a few suggestions:
- Health and wellness programs – With remote employees working mostly in isolation, keeping a healthy lifestyle is even more important to stay fit and healthy both physically and mentally. Employers can help by providing health and wellness programs, such as gym memberships or sports programs.
- Home care services – For many remote employees, the need to fulfill their roles at work and in their household can often collide, and it can be stressful to say the least. Giving them access to home care services such as meal deliveries, cleaning services, and laundry services can be a big help. It can ease their burdens and take their minds off of other responsibilities, allowing them to focus on their work.
Why Benefits Matter
Benefits have a big impact on employee retention, productivity, and engagement. A study published on Zoro showed that 72% of workers believe increased employee benefits leads to job satisfaction. Another report by Glassdoor shows how benefits can also attract top talent, with 60% of people saying that benefits and perks are a major factor when considering a job offer.
Here at CoDev, we make sure your remote team members get the benefits that matter most to them, and we’re also very open to customers who want to offer them even more. To learn more about how you can get a remote team with awesome perks and benefits, or how to seamlessly grow your team of remote workers, get in touch with us today.
