2024 Future of Benefits Report summary
WIth yet another shift in how employees work and live in recent years, comes changes in employer and employees’ expectations. To better understand how these workforce perceptions are impacting employee benefits trends, in Care’s 4th annual Future of Benefits report, Care surveyed 620 Human Resources leaders and 1,000 American workers across multiple industries.
What our report clearly reveals is that while there is still much to do to bridge gaps in employer and employee expectations, there is one common ground in the workplace–and that is centered around the need for care benefits. Employees across all generations have care needs that distract them from work and employers are responding by offering caregiving benefits to attract and retain a mutli-generational workforce and improve productivity.
- 56% of employers surveyed are prioritizing child care benefits, up from 46% in 2023
- 50% are prioritizing senior care benefits, up from 43% in 2023
Download the full report or read on to learn the top four reasons why employees and employers say family care benefits are critical to their success.
#1. All generations of the workforce have caregiving needs
Despite different work habits and career expectations across generations, all generations of the workforce—Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X and Boomers—have caregiving responsibilities that can disrupt their ability to work. While Millennials and Gen X employees are primarily caring for children, the amount of employees caring for older loved ones is nearly uniform across all generations. According to First Five Years Fund, 23% of the U.S. population is or soon will be “sandwiched”-caring for both children and elders. Without employer-sponsored benefits in place to help employees manage care needs, employers are at risk of losing employees.
- 20% of employees have previously left a job because their employer didn’t provide family care benefits
- 70% of working parents say they are more likely to choose an employer that provides child care benefits over one that does not.
- 59% of employees would use caregiving benefits for elder care if available from their organization.
To attract and retain a multigenerational workforce, employers are focusing on family care benefits. Aside from“table stakes” benefits. such as retirement plans, health/dental insurance and PTO/sick days, child care and senior care benefits are among the top ten benefits that HR leaders are prioritizing in 2024.
#2. Employees need help affording care
As the availability of child care has plummeted, most recently due to the loss of federal post-pandemic funding known as the “child care cliff, which could close more than 70,000 child care providers, the cost of care has also skyrocketed, making it difficult for employees to afford care so they can work. Care’s 2024 Cost of Care report reveals:
- The average weekly cost of a nanny is $766 (up 4% from 2022) and the average cost of daycare is $321 (up 13% from 2022).
- Parents are spending on average 24% of their household income on child care, 4x more than what the Department of Human Services deems affordable (at 7% of household income).
- 35% of parents are dipping into their savings to pay for care.
Not surprisingly, when asked what benefits employees needed to help them afford care, employees ranked Flexible spending accounts (FSAs) and cash subsidies as top benefits needs. Similar to Care’s findings, a Catalyst/Harris study, found:
- 55% of working adults said that without financial assistance or subsidies from their organization, they are unable to afford child care
- 35% of the mothers surveyed say they will likely need to stop working altogether to manage the child care they need
This also has a significant financial impact on employers. According to research conducted by the Council for a Strong America, the lack of adequate and affordable child care costs the U.S. economy an estimated $122 billion a year in lost earnings for workers, productivity and hiring costs for employers, and diminished state and federal tax revenues. Read the full report to understand what benefits to help overcome these costly losses.
#3. Care benefits help employees successfully return to office
Many employers are requiring employees to return to the office either full-time or on a hybrid basis, meaning employees once again have to make changes to their care routines in order to successfully work.
- 89% of HR leaders say that their company has required either a full-time (47%) or hybrid (42%) return to office
- Working caregivers say they strongly prefer hybrid work over full-time on-site work
- 48% of employees ranked child care as the most critical need for a successful return to work followed only by commuter benefits (51%)
While employers and workers may never completely see eye-to-eye in this new work environment, specific benefits can go a long way in making any work arrangement–RTO, hybrid, and even fully remote– more feasible for employees.
Employers recognize this and are changing their benefits strategies. Employers we surveyed who are requiring employees to return to the office are offering increased benefits to help ease the transition. Not surprisingly child and senior care benefits are a top priority. Download the report to learn what other return to work benefits incentives HR leaders are rolling out.
#4. Care benefits enhance recruitment, retention, and productivity for employers
For all of these compelling reasons, employers are prioritizing care as a way to support valued employees–and achieve business goals. When we asked employers why they are prioritizing child and senior care benefits this year, they indicated that it helps them achieve multiple business objectives.
- 82% say child and senior care benefits improve productivity
- Nearly 80% say child and senior care benefits help them recruit employees and support a multi-generational workforce
For more insights on employee trends in 2024, and what employers are doing to support their employees, download the full report.
