Improving employee retention with our electric car scheme

These days, a foosball table and beanbags just won't cut it when it comes to employee benefits. In the wake of ‘the great resignation’, companies now need to offer benefits above and beyond fair pay (and beer fridges) to guarantee that their team sticks around.

It’s proven that employees value working with companies committed to sustainability and who are serious about achieving their net-zero targets.

Companies are fighting to stand out as leaders in sustainability, and if you want to attract and keep top talent it’s more important than ever to show employees that you’re investing in greener employee benefits.

Simply put, employee retention is about the different strategies and incentives a company uses to keep teams happy and motivated to discourage staff from leaving. This comes in many shapes and sizes like offering your team employee benefits, recognition and reward systems, a supportive culture, or clear opportunities for career development.

It’s worth remembering that a small percentage of employee turnover is normal, team members naturally move on and fresh talent is needed to spark new ideas.

But any forward-thinking business wants to minimise employee turnover and attract and retain as much talent as possible.

Replacing employees is a very expensive business! Oxford Economics estimates that it can cost as much as £30,000 to replace a single employee. Recruitment, interviews, training new team members, and the short-term loss of productivity all adds up.

Not only is employee retention important for your bottom line, it’s also essential for keeping team morale high, productivity, and holding onto valuable knowledge and skills.

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to employee retention, but there are a few key areas that can keep staff feeling engaged, motivated, and excited to remain part of your team. Let’s take a look at these areas:

Compensation and benefits

Offering competitive salaries and desirable employee benefits are top priority for employees, Willis Towers Watson found that 75% of employees are more likely to stay with their employer because of their employee benefits package.

Keeping salaries realistic and offering a mix of other work perks that your staff actually want will mean you appeal to different people and keep your people feeling fairly paid and cared for.

Benefits can include perks like health insurance, gym memberships, counselling services, or paid volunteering days. With employees being more aware and more likely to want to take action on climate change and sustainability than ever before, it’s also important to consider environmentally friendly employee benefits, like cleaner commute incentives through our EV salary sacrifice scheme. These can also be a great way to save money for your employees.

Recognition and reward

Recognising and rewarding a job well done keeps employees feeling appreciated and valued. Whether it’s a simple word of thanks, a small gift, or a pay increase, you can celebrate your team’s successes in loads of ways.

Why not encourage your team to live more sustainably AND reward them for it? Recognise employees who are committed to green goals, or offer them rewards like ethically-sourced food hampers or gift vouchers for eco-friendly companies.

Whatever way you choose to say thank you, be sure to include a broad range of options to appeal to different people, and keep your team feeling motivated and working hard.

Clear company mission and values

Are your employees clear on your company's mission and values? Have you asked them? If not, you could be missing a great opportunity to keep them engaged and motivated. When your team understands what you stand for and the contribution they make, they’re much more likely to feel like the work they do matters.

Communicating your organisation’s green credentials can set you apart as an employer leading the charge in the fight against climate change, both for your current employees and new talent, along with attracting new customers. Environmentally friendly ways of working and employee benefits show your organisation’s genuine commitment to sustainability and show employees how they can help fight the good fight. If sustainability becomes just ‘how you do things’, your team will see that it’s a key part of who you are as an organisation.

Career growth and opportunities

Employees who feel like they have room to grow and learn with your organisation want to stick around. This might mean showing that you’re a progressive, eco-conscious company, setting out clear and structured career paths, or offering training courses.

When thinking about what to offer, make sure you include a range of opportunities that appeal to different needs and ambitions and show staff how they can grow with you. Ask your employees what they care about and what they think you should prioritise.

Good leadership and management

Our relationship with our boss plays a huge part in how much we enjoy our job and want to keep working for that company. A survey by Visier shows that 43% of employees have left a job in the past because of their relationship with their manager.

Leaders who show they genuinely care about their people and listen to them inspire trust and loyalty from their teams. Welcoming and acting on feedback, communicating honestly, and providing a nurturing and positive environment are all ways to show that you’re a leader who genuinely cares.

When recruiting, it's important to hire leaders who are bought into and will become role models for your company values. Whether it's driving diversity and inclusion, supporting innovation, or fostering a culture of sustainability, employees value leaders who live the company values and inspire and support from the top.

With sustainability becoming more and more important to employees, it’s a great time to take a look at your benefits programme and make some environmentally friendly improvements that keep up with the competition. For example, Employee Benefits found earlier this year that 53% of UK employers currently offer an electric vehicle salary sacrifice scheme.

Our EV salary sacrifice scheme gives your team access to an amazing range of electric vehicles at no upfront cost. Employees sacrifice a portion of their salary each month in return for an eco-friendly electric car that cuts carbon emissions. The Income Tax and National Insurance savings make buying an electric vehicle up to 40% cheaper than it would be normally depending on their tax bracket and the value of the car.

As a business, you’ll pay lower National Insurance Contributions, while helping your employees become part of the fight against climate change, all at zero cost to your business.

It’s a win-win.

So, if you want to move towards a cleaner, greener future, AND improve your employee retention, now’s the time to invest in more sustainable employee benefits.

Get in contact with our team to discuss our EV salary sacrifice scheme today and learn more about how you can make your business a greener, more attractive company to work for.

Read our customer stories and learn more about why companies choose our electric car scheme.