International benefits: Five employer learnings 

Over a quarter of employees say they struggle to understand what benefits are available from their employer, making it the biggest concern for workers. A further 16% struggle to navigate local social security and expat coverages.

Both issues could be solved with better communication strategies, yet just 11% of businesses say communicating benefits to employees is a challenge. This suggests a significant blind spot amongst employers.

We'd urge multinational employers to look at optimising their engagement and communication approach with relevant resources available both internally and via vendors. Making communication an integral part of strategy is key, with integration into yearly reviews and active management of the benefits programme. 

Almost all surveyed employers are expecting to increase or maintain their number of international remote workers. Despite this, nearly a fifth say they do not have a defined benefits strategy to support these employees. Furthermore, new assignment types are causing challenges in the life and disability space with limited solutions available in the market.

Mobility strategies are evolving to deal with the rise of international remote workers and third-country nationals. International Private Medical Insurance has become a default solution for many, with 67% of survey respondents taking this route to support international remote workers. Employers should, however, take care to ensure that the often niche requirements of such workers are not underserved by benefits designed for expatriates. 

Employers must keep up with changing employee needs and ensure that their benefit programmes are both relevant and aligned to their talent management strategies.

Our Health on Demand study considers the power employers have to close healthcare gaps so that all employees thrive. It is encouraging to see that employers are moving towards benefits strategies that support and foster a more diverse talent pool, with 56% citing diversity, equity and inclusion needs as a primary objective of their international medical plan.

Mobility benefits are more inclusive and proactive than ever and we see an increasing number of employers supplementing domestic cover to provide benefits in areas such as gender dysphoria, fertility and birth control cover as part of their international solutions.

Recent geo-political uncertainties, together with an increased claims trend post-COVID (particularly from cancer, mental well-being, respiratory and physiotherapy costs), have led to employers increasingly moving from passive to active plan management. Employees, often travelling with family, are also prioritising their health needs and, given heightened global risks, are reluctant to accept overseas assignments without robust medical benefits in place.

Unsurprisingly, the predominant objective for employers when providing international medical benefits is a duty of care with 90% of respondents citing this. A further 71% of employers agreed that an objective is to prepare for natural risks. 

We encourage and support employers increasingly focused on using the tools made available by their providers to help address these challenges, whilst reviewing their benefit package to ensure they are prepared for all eventualities.