Want to Retain Employees? Here Are 2 Key Benefits Worth Focusing on, Data Says

Hiring staff can be a costly and time-consuming process, no matter what size company you run. But if you own a small business, you may have limited resources (time-related and financial) at your disposal for things like hiring and onboarding candidates. As such, once you find good employees, it's a really good thing to be able to retain them.

But in today's labor market, job-hopping is a fairly common thing. Often, moving from one employer to another is a good way for employees to grow their wages and their careers. So it might take a really concerted effort on your part to keep your best workers on staff.

As a small business, you may not be able to match the salaries some of your larger competitors may be offering. But that doesn't mean you're doomed to lose your best workers after a limited stint. If you focus on two specific benefits, you may find that you're able to keep your staff loyal for the long haul.

Focus on health insurance and retirement savings

In a recent survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute, workers pointed to health insurance and access to a retirement savings plan as things that are most important in the context of their decisions to stay at a current job versus look for a new one. As such, those are two perks you may want to focus on.

First, let's talk about insurance. Healthcare can be a huge concern and expense. If you have workers who are worried about affording medical tests or treatment, it has the ability to seriously impact their performance on the job. So that's reason alone to offer subsidized health insurance.

Next, there's retirement. Without some sort of employer plan, many workers struggle to find ways to sock money away for the future. And while anyone with earned income can open and fund an individual retirement account (IRA), the nice thing about 401(k) plans is that they're funded via payroll deductions. This tends to help workers stay on track with contributions.

But it's not just enough to offer a retirement plan. Ideally, you should aim to offer one with some sort of matching incentive. That doesn't mean you have to offer a 401(k) plan, though. Those can be quite expensive for small businesses to administer. Rather, you can look at other options, like a SEP or SIMPLE IRA, which are small business retirement plans that could be more cost-effective.

Ask your employees what benefits they need to stay put

Clearly, health insurance and access to retirement savings are important to workers in general, as per the aforementioned survey. But if your goal is to retain the talent you've cultivated, then your best bet is to ask your specific employees what benefits they value the most. That way, you can address your human resource needs directly and divert your limited funds to paying for perks that are likely to not only have the most impact but also spare you the hassle of having to replace workers who seek out better offers.

One perk you may be able to offer that won't necessarily cost you a thing is flexibility. Some jobs can be done remotely or at off-hours to accommodate workers' needs. It almost always pays to be accommodating in situations like these, because sometimes, workers will stay put for the flexibility alone.