A recent report by Plum, titled "The State of Employee Benefits 2024," reveals that companies in Bangalore are at the forefront of providing comprehensive employee benefits. According to the report, 70 per cent of companies in Bangalore offer a sum insured above Rs 5 lakhs, and an impressive 72 per cent extend maternity benefits to their employees. In comparison, Delhi companies offer a sum insured more than Rs 5 lakhs at 68 per cent and maternity benefits at 63 per cent, while Mumbai lags behind with only 60 per cent offering a sum insured more than Rs5 lakhs and 62 per cent providing maternity benefits.
The report also sheds light on average claim sizes, with Bangalore recording Rs73,000, Delhi at Rs 62,375, and Mumbai having the highest average claim size of Rs 92,796. These figures directly correlate with the cost of living in each city, with Bangalore at Rs 1,29,564 for a family of four (excluding rent), Mumbai at Rs 1,10,233, and Delhi at Rs 1,12,000.
Abhishek Poddar, Co-founder and CEO of Plum emphasised the significance of companies considering healthcare costs and the cost of living when designing employee benefits. He stated, "Lifestyle diseases and healthcare costs are on the rise. Companies need to factor in these aspects while devising sustainable benefits to ensure employee peace of mind."
The report highlights that financial services, IT services, consulting businesses, SaaS companies, and software development firms offer the best benefits. However, the healthcare and real estate sectors lag, with manufacturing companies positioned somewhere in between.
Healthcare expenses are witnessing an upward trend, with cardiovascular diseases, cancer, injuries, and maternity-related complications being the most claimed ailments. Bangalore and Mumbai report higher cardiovascular conditions, while Delhi sees a higher prevalence of respiratory conditions, according to data from The National Health Profile 2022.
Saurabh Arora, Co-founder and CTO of Plum, stressed the importance of tailored benefits, stating, "Challenging market conditions shouldn't deter companies from offering benefits. Collaborating with clients, we've observed a 110 per cent increase in first-time buyers of group health insurance investing in primary healthcare initiatives for their employees."
The report indicates a positive trend in employee benefits adoption across cities, with a 66 per cent increase in median insurance coverage, a 110 per cent rise in preventive healthcare usage, a doubling in flexible benefits adoption, and a 15 per cent increase in companies offering maternity benefits.
"The State of Employee Benefits" report by Plum, analysing over 4500 policies, serves as a comprehensive resource for understanding how companies design their benefits plans. This year, Plum has released Edition 2 of the report, offering in-depth insights into evolving employee benefits trends.
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