Sponsored by Vigilis
In a context of skilled labour shortages, the relevance of an attractive group insurance program to attract and retain employees needs no longer be demonstrated.
However, it must be an integral part of your HR total compensation strategy.
Interestingly, most group insurance plans today are identical and do not seem to have evolved in the last 20 years, although the reality of the workforce has changed considerably. This is especially true for companies with less than 100 lives.
We all know the key to success: taking the time required for an in-depth assessment of your business needs. This will allow you to set up an insurance plan that supports your other HR actions and one that is truly appreciated by your key employees.
Already have a group insurance plan in place?
Perhaps it is time to question its basics. A few thoughts to explore
- How do the different categories of employees contribute to your firm? Are a particular category makes a greater contribution to the future success of the company? Is another a greater retention challenge? Why treat them alike under your group insurance plan?
Without changing the entire plan, it is certainly possible to value their contribution by reviewing the cost-sharing with the employer. You could also plan for an increasing scale of employer contributions, linked to seniority.
It is also possible to offer certain benefits, such as dental insurance, to a certain category or even to employees with a certain seniority.
- Have you ever considered the fact that traditional cost-sharing penalizes the employee who has the lowest cost profile, that is, the employee who is exempt from health and dental benefits? In addition, this low-cost employee is generally excluded from the Telehealth and Employee Assistance Program if provided through your insurance carrier. Funny logic! Consider that your contribution could:
- Be set as a percentage of gross income, regardless of the selected benefits, with any surplus paid into the employee’s RRSP;
- Cover all mandatory benefits, such as life insurance, short-term and long-term disability insurance and critical illness insurance, leaving the cost of health and dental insurance to employees. As a bonus, it is tax-efficient.
- For Telehealth, or virtual medicine, and the Employee Assistance Program, a separate agreement can be negotiated with a service provider. All employees and their families would then have access and would suffer no dislocation of service during a change of insurer.
According to François Lalonde, Vice-President, Group Insurance at the VIGILIS Group and a trusted partner of the RCCAQ, urgency is the biggest obstacle to a successful group insurance strategy, an asset for your firm and above all a tool of choice for your HR team.
A plan fully adapted to your reality and that integrates seamlessly into your overall strategy is within your reach. You just need the right questions and the right partners.
