EXCLUSIVE: Just 9% of employer respondents do not offer any benefits through a salary sacrifice arrangement, according to research by Employee Benefits and Staffcare.
The Employee Benefits/Staffcare Benefits research 2017, which surveyed 271 employer respondents in February-March 2017, also found that more than three-quarters (80%) of respondents offer benefits through a salary sacrifice arrangement to all staff, which has changed little since 2010, when 78% of respondents did so.
Ten years ago, however, less than two-thirds (60%) offered benefits through a salary sacrifice arrangement to all employees.
The top three benefits offered through a salary sacrifice arrangement at April 2017 are childcare vouchers (95%), bikes-for-work schemes (79%), and pension contributions (75%). These three benefits have consistently been the top three to be offered through a salary sacrifice arrangement since 2009.
However, the sands are shifting for childcare vouchers. The government’s tax-free childcare scheme is being rolled out gradually from April 2017, with all eligible parents expected to be brought into the scheme by the end of this year. The existing childcare voucher scheme is set to close to new entrants from April 2018.
The results of this year’s survey also reveal an increase in holiday trading schemes; more than two-fifths (42%) of respondents offer holiday trading through a salary sacrifice arrangement in 2017, compared to 36% in 2016.