Pandemic Brings Voluntary Benefits to Fore

June 22, 2021

One major repercussion of the COVID-19 pandemic is that employees are embracing the voluntary benefits their employers are offering them, but they’d like to see more choices and issues such as mental health and voluntary benefits have risen to the fore.

The Hartford’s “2021 Future of Benefits Study” found that before the pandemic, benefits were mainly viewed as a means of attracting and retaining talent. But the pandemic changed all that due to the stress of having our work and personal lives upended, as well as the widespread suffering and grief that the coronavirus has caused.

The most significant shift that The Hartford noted has been in what employees value most and they would like to see employee benefits cover better:

Voluntary benefits,
Mental health and well-being,
Engagement and technology, and
Paid leave.

Solid voluntary benefits

Most everyone has felt the personal effects of the pandemic, either contracting COVID-19 and being hospitalized or seeing family or friends get sick and check in for treatment. Many have had loved ones die from the disease.

As a result, voluntary benefits have become a larger priority for many workers.

In addition, employees are expressing more interest in supplemental benefits such as critical illness insurance, hospital indemnity insurance and accident insurance. Employers listened and during the last year:

36% of companies surveyed added accident insurance, half of them due to the pandemic.
32% added hospital indemnity insurance, nearly two-thirds of them adding the coverage in response to the pandemic.
29% added critical illness insurance, 84% of which did so due to the pandemic.
27% added life insurance, three-fourths of which did so due to the pandemic.
21 added long-term disability, nearly two-thirds of them doing so due to the pandemic.

A new focus on mental health

Besides the physical toll that the COVID-19 pandemic took on people who contracted the disease, many have been dealing with mental health and work-balance issues, particularly if they were suddenly thrust into working from home.

That coupled with the overall stress that the pandemic has had on people, has prompted a greater demand for employers to prioritize mental health for their staff. The study found that:

59% of workers said their company’s culture has been more accepting of mental health challenges this past year.
27% of employees said they struggle with depression or anxiety most days or a few times a week (up from 20% in March 2020).
70% of employers now recognize that employee mental health is a significant workplace issue, up from 59% in June 2020.

While the pandemic has brought greater attention to the mental health challenges many workers face, it has also shed light on the opportunities for employers to support their team.

This can be done by ensuring that your health plans include a mental health component, offering your workers an employee assistance program and providing staff with resources, help and education that address wellness and mental health.

Engagement and tech

There was a quantum shift in 2020 to virtual benefits enrollment due to the logistics and danger of turning open enrollment meetings into super-spreader events.

Employers were left having to figure out how to conduct open enrollment and provide benefits education most effectively if a significant portion of their staff was now working remotely. Most employers opted for remote educational and open enrollment events that include teleconferencing and online portals for choosing or renewing health plans.

The survey predicts that the reliance on technology will only increase, with 75% of employers saying their company’s open enrollment strategy will depend more strongly on online resources this year.

The Hartford said that personalization would be key to the success of any employee benefits program:

58% of workers surveyed said they would like a personalized recommendation for what insurance benefits they should be buying.
76% of employers said that they are offering personalized benefit recommendations during open enrollment, up from 71% in June 2020.
Story-driven enrollment tools can offer an employee context. Presenting the material in a relatable way and tailoring the message based on an understanding of an individual’s benefits needs, influences and life stage, can help someone better evaluate whether a certain benefit is right for them.

Paid time off

Paid time off has become a much hotter topic since the pandemic started. COVID-19 prompted a number of states as well as the federal government to support paid time away from work through new laws and regulations.

Employers also took note, and 75% of them ended up increasing the types of paid time away from work they provided, beyond state and federal requirements.

Here’s what happened:

46% of employers expanded their paid medical leave.
46% expanded their paid sick time.
39% expanded paid family leave.
30% expanded paid parental leave.
30% expanded paid time off or vacation time.

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Tackling the Group Health Employee Premium Burden

by Inoventive Solutions

June 15, 2021

As the labor market tightens and businesses struggle to attract new talent, many companies are starting to boost their employee benefit offerings, particularly voluntary benefits.

But besides added benefit choices, what many employees want is relief from continually increasing health premiums as well as more options to choose from for their health insurance.

Group health insurance cost inflation has been averaging about 5% annually over the past few years and many employees have been put into plans that may have kept their share of premiums steady (like high-deductible health plans, or HDHPs), but which have instead increased their out-of-pocket costs.

As we exit the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic, more workers are looking to their employers to give them some relief from spiraling premiums and health care expenses. Here are a few things you can do.

Reduce the employee’s share of premium

You could choose to pay for a higher percentage of the premium, which would reduce their monthly contributions. If that’s not feasible, one tactic that can end up saving you and your employees money is offering to either pay a certain portion of the premium if they choose a silver plan, or pay for the entire premium for employees who choose bronze plans.

The trade-off for the workers who choose the latter option is having no premiums, but more out-of-pocket expenses when they use health care services.

But if you are thinking about taking this route, please discuss it with us first as it’s best to crunch the numbers to see how cost-effective it would be for you.

The majority of workers contribute a portion of the premium for their coverage. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation “2020 Employer Health Benefits Survey”:

The average U.S. worker contributes 17% of the group health plan premium for single coverage, and 27% of the premium for family coverage.
Workers in small firms contribute on average 35% for family coverage.
Workers in large firms contribute on average 24% for family coverage.
Workers in both small and large firms contribute on average 17% for single coverage.

The other option is to just offer to pay for a greater percentage of the premium across the board on the policies you do offer. Obviously, that comes with added expense. But it’s not a strictly financial decision, as a more generous benefits package can have the added advantage of helping you keep key talent and generate employee loyalty.

Offer different types of plans

This can be a win-win for everyone. Younger, healthy employees that do not use health care services often can opt for an HDHP, which features a lower up-front premium in return for the participant having to spend more out of pocket for services they access. But if someone doesn’t use medical services often, this type of plan may the right and most cost-effective option.

On the other hand, for older workers or those who see the doctor more often or have health issues, they may be more inclined to go with a preferred provider organization (PPO) to pay more for a higher premium in exchange for lower out-of-pocket costs over the year.

For the fifth year in a row, the percentage of companies that offer high-deductible plans as the sole option will decline in 2021, according to a survey of large employers by the National Business Group on Health. That may be a continuation of a trend, but the pandemic has also put an emphasis on improved employee benefits.

Here’s a breakdown of the kinds of small group plans across the country in 2020, according to Kaiser:

PPOs covered 47% of workers.
HDHPs covered 31%.
Health maintenance organizations (HMOs) covered 13%.
Point-of-sale plans covered 8%.
Conventional (indemnity) plans covered 1%.

Hire more employees

The more people you have in your group health plan, the more the risk is spread around, which can yield lower premiums.

If you divide the risk amount of a small group of workers compared with a large pool, the law of averages dictates that the insurer will pay less in claims per worker in the larger pool.

In other words, the more employees you hire, the less risk for the insurance company, and the greater premium discount they can offer.

Talk to us

An experienced benefits consultant can help you analyze your spending, and a good broker can help you get the best rates thanks to their network and know-how.

We can provide the insights you need to make the best decision on which types of plans to offer your workers and the best plans for your and your employees’ money ― and we can negotiate the best rates possible on your behalf.

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2022 HSA Contribution Limits, HDHP Minimums, Maximums Set

by Inoventive Solutions

June 8, 2021

The IRS has set the maximum amounts employees can funnel into their health savings accounts and health reimbursement accounts (HRAs) for the 2022 policy year.

The IRS updates these amounts every year to adjust for inflation in addition to minimum deductibles for high-deductible health plans, as well as the out-of-pocket maximums your employees are subject to. HSAs, which help employees save for medical expenses, are only available to employees enrolled in HDHPs.

Here are the new figures for 2022:

HSA annual contribution limit

Individual plan: $3,650, up from $3,600 in 2021
Family plan: $7,300, up from $7,200 in 2021

HDHP minimum annual deductible

Individual plan: $1,400, the same as in 2021
Family plan: $2,800, the same as in 2021

HDHP annual out-of-pocket maximum

Individual plan: $7,050, up from $7,000 in 2021
Family plan: $14,100, up from $14,000 in 2021

Excepted benefit HRA

Maximum annual employer contribution: $1,800, the same as in 2021

Federal law requires health plan enrollees to use HSAs with HDHPs.

HSAs explained

An HSA is a special bank account for your employees’ eligible health care costs. They can put money into their HSA through pre-tax payroll deduction, deposits or transfers. As the amount grows over time, they can continue to save it or spend it on eligible expenses.

Employers can also contribute to the accounts, but the annual contribution maximum applies to all contributions in total (from the employee and the employer).

The money in the HSA belongs to the employee and is theirs to keep, even if they switch jobs. The funds roll over from year to year and can earn interest. Some plans also have investment options for the funds.

There are a number of benefits for employees who have HSAs:

The money an employee contributes to an HSA is not subject to income taxes.
If employees contribute through payroll deduction, the amount is taken from their pay before taxes are taken out, which reduces their overall taxable income.
They are not taxed on withdrawals, and HSAs even help reduce taxable income.
If employees contribute to their HSA with after-tax money, they can deduct their contributions during tax time on Form 1040.
Employees can tap the funds for any approved out-of-pocket medical expenses.

Here’s how they work:

Employees can make withdrawals with a debit card or check specific to the HSA.
Employees can use the money in their HSA to pay for care until they reach their deductible, out-of-pocket expenses like copays and coinsurance.
They can use the funds to pay for other eligible expenses not covered by their HDHP, like dental or vision care (eye exams and corrective lenses).

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DOL Issues Model COBRA Subsidy Notices

by Inoventive Solutions

June 2, 2021

As you will recall, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) includes a 100% COBRA subsidy for people who were laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As part of the law, which took effect April 1, the Department of Labor was required to issue model notices that employers can use to send to eligible former employees.

The ARPA requires that employees laid off or who saw their hours cut during the pandemic to the point they no longer qualified for group health insurance, are eligible for COBRA continuation coverage that is 100% subsidized.

Model notices

The ARPA required the DOL to create three model notices (general, election and termination of the subsidy).

Employers are allowed to use their own notices as long as they satisfy the COBRA notice content requirements.

As with all model notices created by the DOL, employers will need to fill in the blanks for their own COBRA plan and can rely on the boilerplate verbiage to avoid running afoul of regulations. The DOL created four notices in total:

Model general ARPA COBRA notice — This form is to be provided to qualified beneficiaries who have a qualifying event (termination or reduction in hours) between April 1 and Sept. 30. You can download it here.

Model COBRA notice with extended election periods — This form is to be provided to individuals who may be eligible for the COBRA subsidy if they had a qualifying event that took place prior to April 1. You can download it here.

Model alternative notice — This form can be provided to individuals with insured coverage subject to state continuation coverage, who have a qualifying event between April 1 and Sept. 30. The form can be downloaded here.

Model notice of expiration of premium assistance subsidy — This form should be sent to individuals whose COBRA subsidy will end before Sept. 30. You can download it here.

Summary of major provisions and form

The DOL also released a document called the Summary of the COBRA Premium Assistance Provisions under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

This four-page document is designed to be completed by the employer (or your COBRA plan administrator) and included with any COBRA assistance notice that is sent to an eligible terminated worker. The document includes a summary of the major provisions of the law pertaining to the 100% COBRA subsidy.

The employer must include the name of the COBRA administrator in this document. The document also contains a few pages that will allow a terminated employee to ask to be treated as an eligible beneficiary if the employer has not yet done so.

Once the completed forms have been returned, the employer will complete a section indicating if the request is approved or denied, and if denied, the reason for the denial.

The takeaway

You should review these model notices so you don’t run afoul of the law. You’ll want to make sure that you have sent notices to all of the eligible employees.

If you are using the model notices, ensure that you include all of the relevant information for your own plan.

If you are using your own notices, compare them to the model notices and review the guidance to make sure yours include all the content the forms are required to have.

The DOL notes in its FAQs that it considers the use of the model election notices to be in good-faith compliance with the law.

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Health Plan Rebates in 2021 to Be Second Highest on Record

by Inoventive Solutions

May 25, 2021

Group health plan insurers are expected to pay out $618 million in rebates to plan sponsors for the 2020 policy year after seeing use of health care services plummet during the COVID-19 pandemic.

That’s according to a Kaiser Family Foundation estimate in April, which also projects that insurers will pay out $1.5 billion in rebates to enrollees in the individual market.

The total $2.1 billion estimated payout this year is second only to the $2.5 billion insurers paid out in 2020 since the Affordable Care Act took effect and started requiring these rebates. Small and large group health plans received $689 million in rebates in 2020.

The ACA requires insurance companies that cover individuals and small businesses to spend at least 80% of their premium income on health care claims and quality improvement, leaving the remaining 20% for administration, marketing and profit. If they spend less than 80%, the shortfall has to be returned to policyholders in the form of a rebate.

The threshold for large group health plans is 85%. This threshold is called the medical loss ratio (MLR).

The rebates that will be paid in 2021 are based on a three-year MLR average loss ratio (2020, 2019 and 2018). Rebates this year will be paid to sponsors who had group health policies in effect in 2020, and only to those who were in plans that failed to spend enough on medical services. Many plans spend more than the MLR cap on medical services and do not have to pay.

There are two main drivers of larger rebates this year:

There was a significant drop in health care utilization in 2020 — The pandemic depressed the use of medical services as many people who would normally have gone to the doctor for ailments chose to stay home to avoid the risk of contracting COVID-19.

Also, hospitals cancelled elective care early in the pandemic and when COVID-19 cases were cresting, so that they could free up resources for coronavirus patients and reduce the virus’s likelihood of transmission. In fact, an analysis by the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker found that health care spending fell slightly in 2020, making it the first year on record to see spending decline.

Insurers in the individual market had record profits in 2018 and 2019 — The Kaiser Family Foundation earlier reported that individual market insurers were very profitable in 2018 and 2019, even though the individual mandate penalty was eliminated in 2018 and insurers had been reducing their rates the previous few years.

How to handle rebates

Health insurers may pay MLR rebates either in the form of a premium credit (for employers that are still using the insurer) or as a lump-sum payment. More than 90% of group plan rebates come as a lump sum.

Once an employer receives this money, it is their responsibility to distribute the rebate to plan beneficiaries appropriately within 90 days, or risk triggering ERISA trust issues.

How the employer distributes the check will depend on how much their employees contribute to the plan, if at all. Here are the basic rules for employers handling their MLR rebate checks:

If you paid 100% of the premiums, the rebate is not a plan asset and you can retain the entire rebate amount and use it as you wish.
If the premiums were paid partly by you and partly by the participants, the percentage of the rebate equal to the percentage of the cost paid by participants must be distributed to the employees.

If you have to distribute funds to the plan participants, the Department of Labor provides a few options (if the plan document or policy does not already prescribe how they should be distributed):

The funds can be used to reduce your portion of the annual premium for the subsequent policy year for all staff who were covered by all of your group health plans.
The funds can be used to reduce your portion of the annual premium for the subsequent policy year for only those workers covered by the group health policy on which the rebate was based.
You can provide a cash refund to subscribers who were covered by the group health policy on which the rebate is based.

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How to Create a Flextime Policy

by Inoventive Solutions

May 18, 2021

With so many people having been relegated to remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic, many employers are now wrestling with how to proceed as it starts to wane. Many companies are considering implementing hybrid, flextime work schedules after seeing success with remote work.

Flextime is the use of flexible schedules in which employees spend a portion of their workday on the worksite, and the rest from home or another location. For example, a flextime schedule might require an employee to work on-site from 8 am to 2 pm, and complete the rest of the workday from another location.

Unfortunately, there is little legal guidance on the use of flextime schedules. Even the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, which governs minimum wage and overtime pay for most employees, does not address flexible work schedules.

Alternative work arrangements are a matter of agreement between the employer and the employee.

Flextime considerations

If you decide that you want to extend flextime to one or more of your employees, you should start by drafting an official company policy on exactly how it works. It’s always good to get it down on paper.

Take your time to make sure you have all angles covered, including ensuring that you don’t run afoul of wage and hour laws in the process.

Among other considerations, you should address the following three issues when crafting your flextime policy:

Which employees are eligible for flextime (management, sales or others);
What hours employees are required to work on-site; and
Whether prior approval is required from management or human resources.

Once you’ve written out your policy, it may be a good idea to pass it by your legal counsel to ensure you comply with all relevant wage and hour laws. When approved, include the new flextime policy in your company’s employee handbook, so that it is received by all employees who are or may become eligible for the alternative work schedule.

Benefits of flexible hours

Through the availability of smartphones and wireless internet, the amount of work employees can complete off-site has grown significantly. Utilizing available technology for this purpose can increase productivity, and even expand the geographic area in which a business operates.

Employees working remotely can also better attend to family and personal matters, improving their work-life balance and in some cases reducing the need for a leave of absence. They also don’t have to waste time commuting, which for some can be more than two hours or more on the road every day.

Creating a virtual workplace that allows a company to offer a flextime schedule can result in a number of significant benefits, including:

Saving money on work space;
Retaining valuable employees;
Bringing on outside project teams;
Expanding visibility; and
Increasing efficiency and productivity.

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Vision Coverage Can Reduce Overall Health Care Costs

by Inoventive Solutions

May 11, 2021

Research has found that employers who offered their workers stand-alone vision benefits experienced $5.8 billion in cost savings in the aggregate over four years due to reduced health care costs, avoided productivity losses, and lower turnover rates.

That’s because individuals who receive an annual comprehensive eye exam are more likely to enter the health care system earlier for treatment of serious health conditions, thereby significantly reducing their long-term cost of care.

Additionally, people are more likely to get an annual comprehensive eye test than a routine physical, according to the study by HCMS Group, a human capital risk management firm that analyzes data to help employers reduce waste in health benefits.

While not mandatory under the Affordable Care Act for adults, you may consider vision coverage for your employees as it may help decrease your overall health insurance outlays in the future.

The ACA requires that pediatric vision care coverage be embedded in medical benefits for children up to age 19 in group health plans purchased by employers with 100 or fewer employees.

The ACA’s vision care requirement for kids has exposed a gap in coverage for adults that is prompting an uptick in interest in voluntary vision benefits.

According to the “2020-2021 WorkForces Report” by the life insurer Aflac, 67% of U.S. employers surveyed offered voluntary vision benefits in 2020.

And nearly eight out of 10 employees said they would enroll in vision benefits if they were offered by their employer.

Early detection

The main reason vision benefits can help with early detection of illnesses is that comprehensive eye exams provide the only possible non-invasive view of blood vessels and the optic nerve.

As a result, eye doctors can detect early signs of chronic diseases before any other health care provider.

Eye doctors were the first to identify in patients signs of:

Diabetes (34% of the time) — The HCMS study estimates savings of $3,120 per employee due to early identification of diabetes.
High blood pressure (39% of the time) — The study estimates savings of $2,223 per employee due to early identification of high blood pressure.
High cholesterol (62% of the time) — The study estimates savings of $1,360 per employee due to early identification of high cholesterol.

The case for vision insurance

Vision insurance policies typically cover routine eye tests and other procedures, and provide specified dollar amounts or discounts for the purchase of eyeglasses and contact lenses. Some vision insurance policies also offer discounts on refractive surgery, such as LASIK and PRK.

Vision insurance only supplements regular health insurance. Regular health insurance plans pay for eye injuries or ocular disease.

Vision insurance, on the other hand, is a wellness benefit designed to reduce your costs for routine, preventative eye care such as eye exams, eyewear and other services.

With the prospect of reduced health care costs among your employees, which in turn would reflect well in your health insurance premiums, if you have not considered vision benefits before, it may be time to take a second look.

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Health Plans Dropping Out-of-Pocket Cost Waivers for COVID-19 Treatment

by Inoventive Solutions

May 4, 2021

As the light at the end of the pandemic tunnel gets brighter, more health insurers are ceasing to offer cost-sharing waivers for COVID-19 treatment.

After legislation was enacted in 2020 that required health insurance companies to cover COVID-19 tests and vaccines, many insurers voluntarily waived all deductibles, copayments and other costs for insured patients who fell ill with COVID-19 and needed hospital care, doctor visits, medications or other treatment.

Not all health insurers extended these waivers to their enrollees, but many did.

Insurers are still required to provide free COVID-19 testing and vaccinations to their enrollees. That’s because federal guidance requires them to waive such costs.

Also, guidance issued in February after President Joe Biden assumed office, reinforced the Trump administration rule about waiving cost-sharing for testing. Biden’s guidance took an extra step, saying that it applies even in situations in which an asymptomatic person wants a test before traveling or seeing a relative.

Almost 90% of individual and group health plans enrollees were in plans that waived cost-sharing for COVID-19 treatment, according to the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker.

What insurers are now doing

However, starting in late 2020, more and more insurers have quietly been dropping those waivers. For example:

UnitedHealthcare started curtailing its waivers in November.
Anthem stopped its cost-sharing waivers on Jan. 31.
Cigna stopped offering cost-sharing waivers for COVID-19 treatment on Feb. 15.
Aetna ceased offering deductible-free inpatient COVID-19 treatment waivers on Feb. 28.

Not all insurers are doing this though. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota extended eligibility for telehealth benefits and COVID-19 treatment waivers through the end of 2021. Humana, meanwhile, has left the cost-sharing waiver in place for Medicare Advantage members, but dropped it on Jan. 1 for those in job-based group plans.

A study by the Peterson Center on Healthcare and the Kaiser Family Foundation released in November 2020, found that 88% of Americans who have health coverage — including employer-sponsored health plans and individual plans purchased on exchanges — had policies that waived cost-sharing for COVID-19 treatment.

Despite the fact that vaccines are rolling out quickly across the country and in light of a significant percentage of people who are hesitant to get vaccinated for COVID-19, the coronavirus is expected to be a presence in society for some time to come. And that means people will contract it and get sick.

There are also concerns about mutant strains that have developed in South Africa and Brazil, and possibly in India during the massive outbreak in April.

The takeaway

You may want to check with your group health plans to see if they have waived any cost-sharing for COVID treatment, and have since dropped or are planning to drop it.

You should meet with your employees or send them a memo explaining any impending changes for them if they have a health plan that is ending or has ended waivers.

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Put Money into an HSA instead of a 401(k) After Employer Matching: Report

by Inoventive Solutions

April 27, 2021

One of the main recommendations for employees with 401(k) plans is that they should contribute at least enough to their plan every paycheck to ensure they receive the maximum they can in their employer’s matching contributions.

But a new study by Willis Towers Watson recommends that younger, healthier workers should divert savings to their health savings account from their 401(k) after capping out employer matching instead of continuing to put money into their retirement plan.

The report reasons that if they do this, they can get more bang for their buck when they use their HSAs to pay for future medical expenses.

That’s because HSAs can be kept for life and the money they’ve accumulated in them can be used to pay for medical expenses whenever they need them, including in retirement. And the moneys used in HSAs to pay for those expenses are not taxed when they are withdrawn, unlike 401(k)s, the funds of which are subject to federal income tax when withdrawn

The benefits of HSAs

With HSAs:

Pretax contributions, gains from investment, and withdrawals used for qualified medical expenses are exempt from federal and most state taxes.
Any unused balance is carried over to the next year.
Funds never expire.
Unused funds can be passed on to a beneficiary after death.
After turning 65, account holders can withdraw money for any purpose. However, if those funds are not use for a bona fide medical expense, they are taxed as income.

No other retirement savings vehicle has the same tax advantages as an HSA, so a dollar saved in an HSA can be worth significantly more than an unmatched dollar saved in a 401(k), according to Willis Towers Watson. Some employers will match a portion of workers’ HSA contributions or seed their accounts with money to encourage participation.

That said, HSAs won’t outperform funds that are matched partly or fully by an employer, according to the report.

Willis Towers Watson said that those tax-free dollars and withdrawals can help pay for health care when we are likely to use it most: in retirement.

Men who retire at 65 with an average life expectancy of 85 would spend about $140,000 out of pocket for medical costs, and woman who retires at the same age and lives to 87 would spend an average of $159,000, according to the research.

The HSA pitch

HSAs can only be used in conjunction with a high-deductible health plan. When HSAs were first introduced, they did not have investment options for the money in the accounts, but as they have grown in popularity over the years, many HSAs now have evolved to essentially have the same investment choices as a 401(k).

HSAs have rules about how much of the balance can be invested. They will typically require that the first $1,000 in the account to be held in cash, and anything above that can be invested to help the funds grow over time.

In 2021, workers can contribute a maximum of $3,600 to their individual HSA account and $7,200 to a family coverage account.

If you are offering your workers high-deductible health plans with matching HSAs, and if you also provide a 401(k) and match part of the contributions, you may want to consider sharing this information with them to help them make informed choices on where to park their money for future use.

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Addressing Pandemic Fatigue Among Your Staff

by Inoventive Solutions

April 21, 2021

As the country and our businesses continue trudging along and hope that vaccines will pave the way out of the COVID-19 crisis, employers are increasingly seeing the effects of pandemic fatigue among their workers.

The same issues people are grappling with in their personal lives — exhaustion with social distancing and masking, a sense of loss of community and camaraderie, sadness over lost loved ones — are also spilling over into workplaces and affecting job performance.

Pandemic fatigue can manifest itself in noticeable changes in employees’ mood or demeanor and result in an inability to concentrate due to anxiety and sleeplessness.

And now that vaccines are being administered at a quickening pace and word is that we may be able to soon resume normal activities, people have a sense of unbridled excitement. It’s like how kids feel when they’ve had a year of school and summer vacation is right around the corner.

It’s important for all employers to stay the course on their safety protocols, while at the same time acknowledging what their employees are going through. Keep requiring mask-wearing and social distancing.

The effects

Pandemic fatigue is real and can result in:

Employee disengagement — This can lead to poor productivity and mistakes in their work.

Employee conflicts — Many people are stressed and exhausted, which can lead to arguments and irritation with co-workers. It can also happen if one employee doesn’t take COVID-19 precautions seriously, wearing a mask below their nose or chin (or not at all) and angering a co-worker who is serious about safety.

Failing to observe social distancing rules of being 6 feet apart can also result in arguments between co-workers.

Lost concentration — Pandemic fatigue can also lead to employees not focusing well on their jobs and safety regimens. This can result in workplace accidents.

What you can do

There are steps you can take to combat pandemic fatigue in the workplace, but the first and foremost thing you should do is consistently enforce safety rules and make sure that COVID-19 protocols should be part and parcel of the rest of your safety procedures.

You should do this by incentivizing good safety behavior, and rewarding that good behavior.

But you must also be cognizant of the emotional toll the pandemic has had on your workers. You can do this by boosting morale through:

Giving compliments — Provide positive feedback when merited, even for smaller achievements. Compliments go a long way these days due to the stress people have been through.

Showing compassion — Be consistent in your treatment of staff and consider checking in with employees to ensure that they are doing well. Ask how they’ve been faring and show empathy and sympathy for the issues they may be wrestling with.

Remember, some of your employees may have family that has succumbed to the virus or may be currently battling it.

Being calm and patient — It’s important that management shows calm and measured leadership, which can reassure the ranks that things aren’t so bad. Also, if management and supervisors can be patient when workers are dealing with stress, it can in turn tamp down any stress building among staff.

Exuding confidence — Part of being a steady and calming force includes expressing confidence that better times are ahead. This too can help your employees feel more relaxed about the future. Supervisors and managers should also express confidence in and appreciation for the employee’s individual commitment to stay the course.

The final word

These are tough times for most everyone, and for many people their work and personal lives have been upended and replaced with little to no social activity and feelings of isolation and frustration.

By providing steady leadership, continuing to enforce safety protocols and paying attention to the struggles your staff are facing, you can help any workers dealing with pandemic fatigue to better weather the storm that we may soon be exiting.

Pandemic Brings Voluntary Benefits to Fore

Solid voluntary benefits

A new focus on mental health

Engagement and tech

Paid time off

2022 HSA Contribution Limits, HDHP Minimums, Maximums Set

HSAs explained