Typically, companies with a benefits program offer their employees perks like medical, dental, and/or vision coverage. These may be employer-paid, paid for by the employees, or even shared among both the employer and employee. Either way, these are some of the most common yet necessary benefits an employer can offer.

One type of benefit many companies today still don’t offer, but could potentially give them a competitive advantage, is critical illness insurance.

Types of Illnesses Critical Illness Insurance Covers

Critical illness insurance covers a range of life-threatening medical conditions. These might include invasive or mid-to-late-stage cancers, serious heart-related conditions or procedures (e.g., heart attacks, coronary artery bypass surgery, etc.), organ failure, neurological conditions, major surgeries, and/or stroke.

What Types of Employees Value Critical Illness Insurance?

It’s not just employees with existing critical illnesses who might be interested in opting for critical illness insurance. Others who might want this coverage include:

• Those with a family history of a critical illness
• Older employees who are near retirement
• Employees with limited savings
• Single-income households
• Those working in high-stress positions

Does Critical Illness Insurance Actually Retain Staff?

While offering critical illness insurance as part of your employee retention strategy won’t necessarily help retain every employee under your company’s wing, it can still play a role in boosting your program’s participation rate and increasing employee retention.

Typically, companies use specialized types of benefits like critical illness insurance as an indirect driver of staff retention. The best direct way to boost retention among staff through a benefits program is by offering standard benefits with high impact, such as competitive health coverage, employer-matching retirement plans, and paid-time off.

Should Critical Illness Insurance Be Standard or Voluntary?

Critical illness insurance can be offered as part of your program’s set of core benefits or as a voluntary benefit. However, because critical illness insurance is a very specific type of benefit many would not be able to utilize at present, it’s better offered as a voluntary benefit.

By offering critical illness insurance as a voluntary benefit, this gives employees the ability to opt for it if it’s something they feel they can currently benefit from or something they believe they may need to utilize in the future. For some, simply having this type of coverage can bring peace of mind in case of a major medical event.

How to Create a Strong Benefits Program

As an employer, it isn’t enough to merely offer critical illness insurance for staff as part of your retention strategy. A strong benefits program should offer a comprehensive selection of desirable benefits for the average employee your company hires.

However, no two companies should have identical benefits programs, as employers’ and employees’ needs can vary drastically from one company to the next. This is why here at Employee Retention Benefits, we take great care in personalizing an effective benefits plan for each individual client of ours.

Need help creating a competitive retention program? Contact our retention team today to explore a custom solution for your company.