Younger employees – those aged 18 to 34 – are driving demand for workplace health benefits, a poll has suggested, with seven in ten (71%) also worrying about switching employers if they did not offer health cover.
The research from health plan provider Simplyhealth found 60% of Gen Z and millennials want health cover at work, with 60% saying having that benefit was what attracted them to join their company in the first place. Two surveys were carried out, one of 500 UK HR decision makers, while the second polled 2,000 employees.
As long NHS waiting lists for everyday treatments continue, eight in ten younger workers (78%) said it was important that their employer provided health cover.
Some two-thirds (64%) recognised it as their most valuable benefit, compared with less than half (46%) of over-55s. A similar proportion (66%) of young workers said that if they had health cover they would take less time off work because they could see a doctor sooner.
The research also found that three in ten (30%) businesses said job candidates now expect health cover. Moreover, a third of employers (30%) felt communicating health cover benefits had helped them attract new employees and retain their current workforce (29%).
Employers also noticed a marked improvement in employee satisfaction when health cover is provided, with 37% noticing an increase in employee engagement and 33% an increase in productivity.
Three-quarters (76%) of 18-34-year-old workers say health cover would improve their productivity at work as they could address health concerns more quickly.
The data nevertheless also revealed that younger UK workers were more likely to take time off work for mental health problems than older workers.
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Seven in ten (71%) attributed time taken off work in the past 12 months to anxiety, compared with just three in ten (32%) of over-55s.
Employers, too, were feeling the effects of this, with a third (33%) reporting rising mental health days as one of the biggest problems their business is facing.
In the past 12 months, 30.95% of all calls to Simplyhealth’s mental health support service were from 18-34 year-olds, the provider said.
Paul Schreier, CEO at Simplyhealth, said: “Younger workers no longer view health benefits as a bonus, more, they expect them. While the UK continues to suffer from a workforce sickness epidemic and long NHS waiting times, the provision of affordable and accessible health cover at work has never been more important.
“Employers who want to attract and retain top talent, keep their workforce healthy, and improve business productivity, should recognise the importance of offering health cover. We urge the new government to acknowledge low-cost health cover as an effective tool to tackle in-work sickness and to reduce the excessive tax burden placed on health cover products to incentivise take up by businesses,” he added.
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