With talk of spending cuts all over the news, many public sector organisations will be concerned about how they are going to cover their basic obligations of care, let alone any additional benefits. With eyecare being not only an essential provision but also an obligatory one, Specsavers Corporate Eyecare is offering cost-saving voucher schemes to cover all eyecare needs.
The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations require employers to provide all employees who use visual display units (VDUs), with eye tests, when requested, and glasses, if required. On-the-ground research by Specsavers Corporate Eyecare shows that public sector organisations are typically spending between £50 and £80 per employee, and some as much as £200, to meet the regulations. Voucher schemes can, however, cover an employer’s obligations for just £17, a massive potential saving when multiplied across the five million-plus public sector employees.
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Jim Lythgow, director of strategic alliances for Specsavers Corporate Eyecare says, “The old system of purchasing eyecare through negotiation with individual opticians has now become very outdated. The administrative and financial burden on organisations has just become too much. A simple voucher system can change this: Vouchers can be purchased in advance and simply handed out as required; all employees receive the same level of care, at a vastly reduced cost to the employer. Whilst vouchers can be purchased to cover all levels of eyecare, the VDU vouchers are specifically designed to cover an employer’s obligations under the display screen equipment regulations.”
