Most workers satisfied with health benefits, but some would take less pay for more of them
Results from two surveys shed light on employee views about health and retirement plans.
The majority of employees are satisfied with the health benefits they receive, according to results of the inaugural Workplace Wellness Survey conducted by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and the independent firm Greenwald Research. However, workers at smaller companies are twice as likely as those at larger ones to prefer more health benefits over higher wages.
Meanwhile, COVID-19 has increased concerns about retirement preparations, with respondents to the 2020 Wells Fargo Retirement survey indicating the pandemic has permanently impacted their ability to save.
Related: 5 tips for supporting employee wellness goals in 2021
Results of both surveys were presented during a wide-ranging one-hour webinar presented by EBRI on Feb. 16 and hosted by Paul Fronstin, director of the institute’s health research and education program.
“Without question, health care is the benefit most important to workers when making job decisions,” said Lisa Greenwald, president and chief executive officer of Greenwald Research, referring to the EBRI survey, which reflects the opinions of 900 American workers between the ages of 21 and 64 who were polled in summer 2020.
Overall, 63% of respondents are satisfied with the health benefits they currently receive from their employers. But when asked if they would rather have more health benefits and lower wages, 27% of respondents who worked at companies with fewer than 50 employees answered “yes,” compared to 20% at companies with 50 to 2,499 employees and 12% at companies with more than 2,500 employees.
“I think that’s pretty profound,” Greenwald said.
Other findings:
- Nearly half of employees (47%) are extremely or very satisfied with their benefits package, 58% are satisfied with their employment-based retirement savings plan, and 54% are satisfied with their current health insurance plan.
- About three-quarters of employees find their health benefits easy to understand, which is more than the six in 10 who expressed the same level of understanding about their non-health benefits.
- Slightly more than half (54%) of employees report their employer has done an “excellent” or “very good” job communicating COVID-19 policies and procedures, while 49% feel communication about health benefits has been strong. Nearly as many believe their employer has done a good job communicating about mental health and work-life balance during the pandemic.
- Just under half of all respondents would welcome advice — either from third-party benefits advisors or online programs — when making decisions about open enrollment options. One-third of individuals at companies with fewer than 50 employees are most likely to prefer an advisor over an online tool.
“Don’t underestimate the value of a live person, particularly at smaller companies,” Greenwald said.
Meanwhile, the 2020 Wells Fargo Retirement study, which examined the attitudes and savings of almost 4,600 working adults and retirees last summer, indicates that nearly 60% of workers impacted by the pandemic — compared to 37% of all workers — don’t know if they have enough money saved to retire because of COVID-19. Moreover, among workers impacted by COVID-19, 70% are worried about running out of money during retirement.
Nearly all workers and retirees also say that Social Security and Medicare currently play or will play a significant role in their retirement, a reality underscored by the pandemic. According to the study, 71% of workers, 81% of those negatively impacted by COVID-19, and 85% of retirees say that COVID-19 reinforced how important Social Security and Medicare are or will be for their retirement.
The results of the Wells Fargo survey also suggest that women and younger employees feel less satisfied and less confident regarding their financial futures than other demographic groups, according to Nate Miles, head of Retirement at Wells Fargo, who also spoke during the webinar.
He noted that just 51% of women say they are saving enough for retirement or believe they will have enough savings to live comfortably in retirement. Additionally, according to the survey, women impacted by COVID-19 are less likely to have access to an employer-sponsored retirement savings plan.
Similarly, though Generation Z workers started saving at an earlier age and are participating in employer-based savings programs at a greater rate than other generations, they are nonetheless worried about their future, Miles said. More than half of the nation’s youngest workforce (52%) don’t know if they’ll be able to save enough to retire because of COVID-19. Additionally, 50% are more afraid of life in retirement due to COVID-19, and 52% say pandemic took the joy out of looking forward to retirement.
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