Group Benefits 101 for Small Businesses in Canada
Small businesses form the backbone of the Canadian economy, contributing significantly to growth and employment. While the focus of small business owners is often on daily operations, neglecting employee benefits can impact workforce morale and retention.
This blog post serves as a guide to group benefits for small businesses in Canada. We hope this helps you understand group benefits and why reaching out to a benefits advisor would be helpful for both you and your workforce.
Understanding Group Benefits:
Group benefits encompass a range of insurance and wellness options provided by employers to their employees. In Canada, these benefits play a crucial role in attracting and retaining top talent while fostering a healthy and motivated workforce.
The Basics:
For the basics of group benefits, you’re looking at health and dental coverage, life insurance options and disability insurance. These are the three main groups of benefits that employers and employees are interested in having. As an employer, you can work with us to decide on levels of costs being covered, the number of hours covered, etc to make it work for both you and your team.
Customizing Benefit Plans for Small Businesses:
The fun comes when you get to customize your group benefits plan to match your team’s needs. This can be adding wellness options in, counselling offerings as well as physical health offerings like physiotherapy and chiropractic care.
Mental health is one of the most important additions to any benefits plan. With 91% of employers investing more resources in this area, it looks like it’s time to make mental wellness a non-negotiable employee benefit.
Budget Considerations:
We understand that every business has a budget. When you reach out to Navy & Sage Benefits, we are able to help guide you into creating benefit plans that align with your financial capabilities.
Employee Input:
It’s very important that when customizing a plan that works for your business is to consider your employees. Ask for their input when designing different benefit plans. Ask them what they consider important, and what they’re looking for. Having this feedback also helps us when working with you to come up with the ideal plan to ensure employee satisfaction.
Communication Strategies:
Educating Employees:
As a business owner or manager, provide strategies for effectively communicating benefit plans to employees, ensuring they understand the value of their coverage. This could be a Lunch & Learn or a document that they read that goes over your benefits offerings and how they go about utilizing them.
Open Dialogue:
Having open dialogue will go a long way within your company. Encourage open communication channels to help address concerns and gather feedback on the effectiveness of the benefits offered.
Reach out to create your perfect plan.
Navigating the realm of group benefits for small businesses in Canada requires a strategic approach. By understanding the basics and effectively communicating benefits to employees, small businesses can create a workplace that attracts, retains, and supports a thriving workforce.
Investing in group benefits is not just a perk; it’s a strategic move towards long-term business success. Please reach out to Navy & Sage Benefits when you’re ready to learn more about how different benefits can change your workplace for the better.
