UK employees not accessing health benefits

The latest research shows that one third of employees in the UK are not currently accessing health benefits that they are entitled to, which raises questions about how they are being administered.

This data was published by Simplyhealth, a company that offers healthcare services. It shows that 34% of UK workers are not accessing health-related benefits, while 53% are having difficulty in doing so. Among the problems that employees encountered when trying to access them was the need to get approval from their line manager. That was cited as an issue by 16% of those who took part in the research.

A further 13% of them – which adds up to over one out of every 10 – said that pre-authorisation was needed before they could access health benefits. This had to be provided by either an insurer or one of their managers. Meanwhile, 13% told the research that their company processes for accessing benefits were overly complex.

Setting up and administrating employee benefits is a matter for HR, with some companies opting to hand it over to outsourced HR services in Bedfordshire.

Jo Werker, who is the Boostworks CEO, said to HR Magazine that it should be handled in an inclusive and holistic way:

“The UK workforce is increasingly diverse in terms of age, culture, work patterns and financial wellbeing, so a one-size-fits-all approach to benefits simply doesn’t work anymore.”

Werker went on to argue that clear and ongoing communication is needed to make sure employees know what benefits they are entitled to. She added that this should range from in-person to digital communications.