Flexibility, Remote Work Still Top Priorities for Workers

A new survey reveals that employees continue to be hungry for options, including increased flexibility in work arrangements and more choices in terms of employee benefits.

The survey was released by HealthEquity, a health savings account (HSA) administrator based in Draper, Utah. Called the “Working in the New Normal Survey,” the study includes responses from more than 1,000 Americans who transitioned from working on-site to working remotely (at least part-time) because of the pandemic.

Two of the main findings: More than half (56 percent) of respondents said they are not satisfied with their employer’s changes to benefits in response to current work realities. In addition, the survey confirmed that workers highly value flexible work schedules and decreased commuting time and costs.

Switching to Remote Work Is a Popular Move

The survey found that the Covid-19 pandemic has caused 43 percent of respondents to switch to remote work, at least part-time, from full-time on-location work. Of those workers, 66 percent said they would prefer to maintain an element of remote work after the pandemic—either through a hybrid work model or by working remotely full-time. Only 23 percent said they would prefer to return to full-time on-site work.

In addition, 71 percent said a flexible work schedule is among their most valuable benefits. A significant number of workers indicated their productivity is better when working remotely, with 33 percent listing productivity as a top-three reason for preferring remote work.

Avoiding the hassle of commuting is another common reason for preferring remote work. Fifty-one percent of respondents said time savings from not having to commute represent one of their top three reasons for preferring remote work, and 42 percent listed cost savings from not commuting as a top reason.

“Room for Improvement” with Benefits

The survey found evidence that employers can do better with adapting benefit offerings to the changing times. When asked about their satisfaction with their employer’s benefits, only 29 percent said they are very satisfied with the support their employer offered during the pandemic.

The analysis suggests that satisfaction with employer support is linked to whether the employer expanded benefit offerings during the pandemic. With employers that expanded at least one benefit, 34 percent of employees said they are very satisfied with the support given by their employer. With businesses that did not expand benefits, only 13 percent of workers said they are very satisfied with their employer’s support.

The survey ranked the following benefits as among the most important: Flexible work schedules were selected as a top-three benefit by 71 percent of respondents, followed by retirement plans (63 percent), home-office stipends (33 percent), HSAs (33 percent), and wellness/fitness benefits (29 percent). One number that the analysis singled out: 75 percent of female employees said flexible work schedules are a top benefit, while 67 percent of male workers said the same.

HealthEquity also polled employees on HSAs. One important finding is that workers increased their contributions to their HSAs during the pandemic. The survey found that 46 percent of HSA participants increased contributions since the start of 2020, and 40 percent said they increased healthcare spending in the past year.

From: BenefitsPRO