The Covid-19 pandemic has forced employers to take quick decisions, many of which may have affected their staff. Lockton was keen to find out more about the consequences of such measures on companies’ employees worldwide.

In a survey that included 500 companies across 33 countries, Lockton has asked a series of questions regarding the employee benefits strategy, addressing for example potential plans to broaden healthcare provision, to review wellbeing strategies, or to introduce cost-saving initiatives.

The data shows that those firms who are carrying out cost-saving measures as result of Covid-19 have tended to focus on short-term policies such as hiring freezes, contract changes or redundancies. Less than 1% of respondents stated that they planned to make reductions in the benefits offering provided to staff.

The results suggests that employers place greater value on the wellbeing of staff and the importance of their benefits packages than on short-term cost savings. It also shows that the health and wellbeing of employees remains at the forefront of employers’ minds and that the top management is generally aware that Covid-19 has created additional challenges for their staff’s mental and physical wellbeing.

As the pandemic begins to recede it is crucial that firms continue to fine tune their response and gain a deeper understanding of the ongoing challenges facing their teams.

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