Are Our Benefits Beneficial?

 

Fall is benefits renewal time for GSS. In late September a survey went out to staff for feedback on satisfaction with the current benefits plan. Let’s take a look at feedback highlights. The survey asked staff if they were ‘very satisfied’, ‘satisfied’, ‘somewhat satisfied’, ‘unsatisfied’ or ‘neutral’ with 6 items:

  • Current benefit plan overall

  • Health coverage in general

  • Dental coverage

  • Paramedical coverage (i.e., massage, physio)

  • Health Spending Account (HSA)

  • Cost of the plan for benefits received

Of 136 staff who got the survey link, 94 or 69% responded, a very high response rate for an online survey. The chart below shows the percentage of respondents who were ‘Satisfied’ or ‘Very Satisfied’ with the six survey items.

  • Satisfaction was highest with the Health Spending Account and dental benefits: 73% of respondents choosing ‘Very Satisfied’ or ‘Satisfied’ for those items. Ratings were similar (71%) for the current benefit plan.

  • Two thirds of respondents were ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’ with paramedical benefits and overall health coverage, with ratings of 65% and 62% respectively.

  • Slightly less than half the respondents (47%) had those satisfaction levels with the benefit costs.

Respondents added 17 comments. Suggestions about the benefit plan and health coverage focused on being able to tailor and adjust benefits based on services that the individual or dependents would use. For example, could a child opt out of massage benefits they wouldn’t use, or could those be transferred to the staff member? Several respondents expressed dissatisfaction with the customer service provided by the benefits company, while another noted that, during a health need, they appreciated being able to access short and long-term disability support readily. There were suggestions about added or increased coverage of dental services and paramedical services like massage. Since these areas already have coverage, watch for an upcoming Human Resources information session reviewing those benefits in detail and how the Health Spending Account can be used for added support.

Thank you to those who took the time to give valuable feedback on the benefits plan.  Overall, there is a strong level of satisfaction with the benefits plan and its components. However, the cost of the plan is less satisfactory. The Human Resources team will look at these results and comments in detail to help monitor the appropriateness of the current benefits provider. 

Research into potential improvements is ongoing so watch for new information when new or alternative benefit opportunities are identified. Again, watch for the benefits information session to learn more about what is covered and to get remaining benefit questions answered.