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Tony Byrne, managing director of Wealth & Tax Management, assesses a range of benefits that employers can offer to their staff
I WAS recently discussing employee benefits to a director of a fairly large company but one with just a handful of staff. While the company is very successful and has substantial assets, it employs only five people.
Surprisingly it offers no employee benefits… not even a workplace pension, which I found astounding.
I warned him that his employer will face a large fine for not providing a workplace pension. He countered, however, that the staff had declined the benefit which I found surprising, to say the least.
Anyhow, the discussion ensued and I gave him some ideas about which employee benefits his employer should consider offering to his staff. I suggested the following;
A workplace pension with employer contributions of at least 3%;
Death in service (life insurance) of, say, 4 times salary or equivalent;
Company car (100% electric) because the benefit is so lowly taxed;
Private medical insurance;
Membership of a discounts club such as Perkbox;
Free personal financial planning advice (paid for by the employer).
The challenge with businesses employing small numbers of staff is that they do not enjoy the bulk discounts that companies with larger staff numbers enjoy. Nonetheless, there are a number of simple things they can do.
For example, they could arrange relevant life insurance policies for staff on which the premiums are tax-deductible as long as staff put their policies into trust.
Chamber of Commerce members enjoy a 50% discount for the first three years on group private medical insurance premiums for staff with AXA. Family members can be added to the policies too.
Employers are increasingly considering paying for personal financial planning advice for their staff too because they recognise that money worries are a cause of employee stress which leads to a significant amount of work days lost as well as underperformance at work.
If you are a director or a senior executive of an SME employing at least five members of staff and you are unsure what benefits to offer your team, join us for a one-hour Discovery Meeting either at our offices or by a video conference call at our expense worth £270 to each of the first three readers who contacts us before March 31 2021. You know it makes sense. We offer a great cup of coffee too… but unfortunately not a virtual one yet. Ring us on 01908 523740 or for free on 0800 980 4516 or email wealth@wealthandtax.co.uk.
Tony Byrne is managing director of Wealth & Tax Management, a chartered and certified financial planner, a chartered wealth manager and author of Wealth Magic.
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The contents of this article are for information purposes only and do not constitute individual advice.
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