Workers want more benefits focused on financial security and stability and less on career growth and work-life balance, according to an analysis released Wednesday by Gartner.
Gartner surveyed more than 10,000 employees in May. Per those results, employees seek protection against “unanticipated costs,” particularly medical costs, survey results showed, and consider paid time off and work-life balance less important than in the past.
Pay growth and long-term incentives matter most to employees at the moment as well as spot bonuses with increased frequency, Gartner said. But wellness benefits — despite continued investment by employers — continue not to be valued by workers and could be stripped away, per the report.
“Employee well-being has not meaningfully improved in the past three years, despite significant organizational investment,” Joe Coyle, vice president analyst in the Gartner HR practice, said in a statement. “Employees do not value most individual well-being benefits, except for [lifestyle spending accounts], GLP-1 access, and fitness subsidies, offering CHROs the opportunity to make targeted changes to the well-being benefits offered.”
Employee well-being and benefits investment are important considerations as healthcare costs continue to skyrocket, various studies show. Average healthcare cost per employee could reach more than $19,000 a year, according to a recent report from Aon, and healthcare costs overall could rise by 10% next year, per the Business Group on Health — an “unprecedented” environment for employers to navigate, BGH leaders said.
GLP-1 coverage remains a flashpoint as employers consider both cost and employee desires, Gartner noted. Both BGH and Aon pointed to the role the expensive medications play in rising costs; in response, not a single employer surveyed by BGH said they were adding GLP-1 coverage for weight management to their benefits in 2027.
While Gartner advised that GLP-1 coverage should be advertised to workers as a preventative health offering to more broadly improve participation in wellness programming, the company also said CHROs generally should “assess their programs to ensure investments that protect the workforce from unexpected medical costs are prioritized and communicated transparently to employees.”