How to Design an Inclusive Benefits Plan

It’s common knowledge that benefits plans play a major role in employee morale, satisfaction, loyalty, retention and recruitment. With the COVID-19 pandemic, expectations around benefits provided by workplaces have changed tremendously. In Sage Intacct’s 2021 Return to Growth Outlook Report, 27% of businesses reported implementing non-traditional HR policies – such as childcare stipends or flexible work, for the first time during the pandemic.

In an age with a spotlight on inclusion, providing competitive benefits that apply to a diverse workforce’s needs is an important step in fostering productivity and a key sense of belonging. Here are some important steps you can take to create an inclusive benefits plan that goes above and beyond to meet employee needs.

1. Identify your budget and basic requirements

When developing a benefits plan, start with what you already know. Identify the budget your organization has for a benefits plan along with the main objectives for your plan. This includes understanding how the plan aligns with your organizational HR strategy and values. If this is the first benefits plan at your organization, you may need to obtain quotes for key benefits from benefits brokers or consultants to get an understanding of projected costs. 

Also be aware of state, provincial and federal laws that impact the benefits you need to include. For instance, if an organization chooses to provide a benefits plan in Ontario, they are required to comply with the Employment Standards Act. 

2. Get a sense of what your employees need

The best way to know what your employees need is to ask them! 

Try sending out a benefits survey to see what benefits are important to them. You may also want to use this survey to gather demographic information about your employees. This can help to segment benefits according to specific factors such as age or region. For instance, if your workforce includes students, they may have specific needs related to flexible work. If you have an older workforce, they may have certain needs for retirement. These insights will help you better understand tradeoffs between benefits and what your employees will benefit more from. Employees may also have great insights on benefit partners to work with. 

3. Build your plan

Now that you have an idea of what you need and the resources you’re working with, it’s time to put your plan together. Using your knowledge of budget limitations and the information you gathered on employee needs, arrange your potential benefits in order of priority. Most plans include basic benefits such as healthcare, dental and vision insurance, paid time off and parental leave.

While working within your budget, keep in mind that employees have individual needs. Strive to create an inclusive culture and prioritize diverse needs by expanding your plan to include other important benefits. Here’s a list of important benefits to consider, along with ways to enhance basic benefits:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance - A 2020 study by Fractl found that 54% of employees would give heavy consideration to having better health, dental and vision insurance when choosing between a high-paying job and a low-paying job with better benefits. Health insurance is a necessary part of all benefits plans, but how can it be enhanced to be more inclusive?

  • LGBTQ+ care benefits - A great example is Walmart’s partnership with Included Health to provide gender affirming care, care coordinators with specific experience that provide support on a range of topics, and support with finding providers that are clinically competent. Coverage for gender affirming care can help employees bring their full selves to work and develop a stronger sense of belonging. 

  • Fertility treatment is another important benefit to include. 

• Mental health support - As a vital part of employee wellness, mental health coverage is a necessary component to an inclusive benefits plan. With a significant increase in burnout over the last year, access to the right care and qualified mental health practitioners can make all the difference. 

• Flexible working policies - Global Workplace Analytics estimates that 25-30% of the workforce will be working-from-home multiple days a week by the end of 2021. Today, flexible working policies go hand-in-hand with mental wellness by giving employees autonomy to complete work according to non-traditional work schedules. They can also be cost-effective with reductions on office utility costs and rental space. Find what fits a balance between employee needs and organizational demands. This could take the form of flexwork, remote work or other creative scheduling.

• Parental leave - Discrimination due to maternal bias, and the notion that employees struggle to perform their jobs to standard after entering parenthood are significant barriers to morale and retention. Parental leave should go beyond maternity leave (leave for the birthing parent) to include non-birthing parents, adopting parents, and foster parents. Childcare benefits are also a valuable benefit to include to support parents. 

• Caregiving & bereavement leave - When designing bereavement leave benefits, consider that different cultures hold different traditions and lengths for grieving periods. Strive to provide grief counseling resources and create flexibility for what defines an immediate or extended family member. Also specify leave for miscarriages or pregnancy loss in your policies, so that employees know with absolute certainty that their workplace supports this.

• Veteran/military service benefits, life insurance, disability insurance and retirement plans - Depending on your workforce’s needs, these benefits also give employees security for the future and make them represented in your organization’s values. 

Diverse benefits that accommodate a broad range of needs are essential to making employees feel represented and valued. For inspiration on ways to promote inclusion through your benefits plan, see how Netflix’s inclusive benefits plan provides trans coverage, benefits for veterans and wide-ranging health coverage.

4. Implement the plan

When rolling your new benefits plan out, make sure that all employees gain a strong knowledge of their benefits and are encouraged to use them to the fullest. Equip managers with the resources they need to communicate benefits clearly to their employees. Holding an orientation meeting or recording an introduction video can be useful ways to do this. Be sure to introduce benefits while onboarding new employees too, as benefits can often be a driving force behind the decision to join a new organization - and new hires will want to understand them in detail.

Make sure that employees always have a reliable way to reach out and clarify any questions they may have about their benefits coverage. 

5. Keep the feedback coming!

Employee needs change over time - the pandemic has been a testament to this. Keep up with the changing needs of your employees by staying receptive to feedback and maintaining open communication lines. This is the best way to ensure that your benefits plan does the job it’s supposed to do - empower your employees. 

Consider sending out a regular benefits feedback survey or incorporating your organization’s benefits plan as part of your usual employee feedback surveys. When asking employees what other benefits they’d like to see included, make sure to only list what your organization is able to provide. This encourages transparency and prevents employees from being given false expectations, especially when a request for a benefit that cannot be fulfilled is made. 

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