Organizations can offer a wide range of benefits to their employees, from paid leave, to retirement plans, to wellness programs. These benefits take up a significant portion of an employee’s compensation package and impact employee attitudes and wellbeing. However, the specifics of how benefits impact employee outcomes is somewhat unclear. New research (Hong et al., 2024) explains how the use, availability, and the subjective evaluation of employee benefits impacts employees. The research also discovers which types of benefits may be most beneficial.
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS AND OUTCOMES
The researchers conducted a meta-analysis, which involved synthesizing the results of over 130 different studies about employee benefits. Generally, they found that it was subjective evaluation – or the perceived satisfaction with the benefit – that showed stronger relationships with employee commitment, job satisfaction, and lower turnover intentions compared to just the use or availability of benefits. In part, this is because employees who had higher satisfaction with benefits felt more supported by their organizations.
As for the type of benefits, more traditional benefits (e.g., healthcare, retirement) showed stronger relationships with employees’ desire to stay in the organization compared to newer, unique offerings like wellness and employee assistance programs, which were only weakly related to well-being. Training benefits (e.g., training courses, support for advanced degrees) were also related to job satisfaction and commitment to the organization.
PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS
The researchers offer several practical implications. First, it is important to make sure that employees value the benefits that are offered to them, otherwise these benefits may not be as effective. Second, organizations should increase communication and transparency about their benefits and gather feedback on which benefits would be most valuable for their employees. Next, offering customized benefits may go a long way in helping employees better meet their needs. Finally, if job satisfaction and commitment are the primary goals, investing in employee development and training opportunities may also be important.
Hong, Y.-H., Ford, M. T., & Jong, J. (2024). Employee benefit availability, use, and subjective evaluation: A meta-analysis of relationships with perceived organizational support, affective organizational commitment, withdrawal, job satisfaction, and well-being. Journal of Applied Psychology, 109(12), 1921–1947.
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