Cash is still king but benefits also make employees stay

Non-monetary benefits such as flexible work options, company-sponsored holidays and car on lease can play a key role in arresting attrition and attracting the best of talent, say human-resources (HR) experts.

According to a study, on attrition and its connection to rewards, companies that provided nonmonetary rewards to employees reported an attrition rate of 11% in 2022. This was significantly lower compared with the average attrition of about 16% for the companies covered in the study. Monetary benefits, though, played a bigger role in enticing employees to stick to their existing jobs, as attrition was only 5% at companies that rewarded performance with cash.

Employee engagement platform Advantage Club came up with the findings after analysing data from 100 companies that together employed around 1 million people.


“This study looked at attrition rates for employees who received monetary rewards in 2022 and compared them to employees who received non-monetary rewards and those who did not receive any reward,” said Advantage Club cofounder and chief executive Sourabh Deorah.

Post-pandemic, the work-fromhome option is at the top of the list of such benefits. Companies cited holiday & experience programmes, lifestyle-based leaves and sabbaticals among other policies that are helping them retain employees.

Tata Steel in recent years has introduced remote working, including from home, for its employees, among other benefits, a spokesperson said. It “continuously revamps them (benefit policies) to meet the needs of our employees,” the spokesperson added.

The young talent places a much higher value on work-life balance and job satisfaction than on purely financial compensation, according to Supratik Bhattacharyya, RPG Group’s chief talent officer.

“Non-monetary benefits are clearly, therefore, assuming more significance than ever before,” said Bhattacharyya.

Such policies often include essentials like work-life balance, personal development, paid time off, recognition, development opportunities and fringe benefits that go a long way in keeping employees motivated, according to experts.

“Non-monetary benefits also end up being a point of differentiation between different employers,” said Vedanta Group chief HR officer Madhu Srivastava. These rewards act as an important tool to reward employees outside of the obvious monetary options provided, she said.

Vedanta has in place employee assistance programmes that help staffers discuss problems impacting their personal and professional lives.

According to a separate study by Quess Corp, more than half the informal female employees (56%) prioritise nonmonetary aspects such as building a career, contributing to the community, learning new skills, and supporting their passions and interests.