Top 10 Most Appealing Employee Perks & Benefits

These days, employees expect unique and flexible benefits from their employers compared to earlier generations. With the pandemic also came a change for new benefits and workarounds that employers had to adapt to keep their employees happy.  There became a more obvious need for a good work life balance when workers started working from home due to the frequent lock downs and quarantine issues

The mix of millennials and Gen Z employees are calling the shots in the Malaysian job markets where only a fat paycheck is not enough to keep them in their jobs. Companies are now trying to attract and retain the workforce through attractive perks and benefits. 

It looks like the new approach of employers is working. According to the Employee Movement and Retention report that surveyed 1,004 Malaysian employees, revealed that nearly 45% of employees like and 24% love their job. 

In this post, we will take you through the best employee benefits and perks at work in Malaysia.

Why should companies offer employee benefits?

Here are the top 10 most attractive employee perks and benefits in Malaysia:

1. Free or subsidised foods/snacks

2. Medical Benefits for Self and Family

3. Paid Annual Leave and Holidays

4. Reimbursement of Benefits

5. Flexible Work Hours

6. Free Parking

7. Office Furniture/Locker Facility

8. Gym facility

9. Incentives and Bonuses

10. Wellness activities and Trainings

Let’s dive into the main reasons why companies now offer more unique employee benefits:

Attract the best talents 

Companies want to hire and retain the most talented and motivated workers who can help them grow. 

A study found that even 50 per cent of companies with fewer than 50 employees offer medical benefits, and 96 per cent of companies with more than 100 employees offer both mandatory and additional benefits. 

Improves employee retention

Besides hiring, companies also need a strategy to retain employees. This is where attractive benefits and perks come in handy besides a good pay grade.

A comprehensive benefits package can help the organisation retain their employees and prevent them from getting swayed by other job offers. 

Keep the workforce healthy

If your company wants more productive employees, excellent health benefits will surely help. 

Health issues and medical expenses can distract employees. If your company covers those expenses, workers will remain healthy and loyal. 

Boosts employee productivity

Great benefits and perks motivate talented workers to remain with your company for a longer period and become more productive.  

10 most appealing employee perks and benefits   

Let’s delve into the 10 most appealing perks and benefits in detail:

1. Free or subsidised food/snacks: Getting free meals is one of the most attractive benefits/perks for employees. A study shows that Malaysians spend 17.3 per cent of total spending on food. Then imagine how appealing free or subsidised food will seem to employees.

2. Medical Benefits for Self and Family: It is estimated that medical expenses in Malaysia increase by 10 and 15 per cent annually. Providing medical, dental, vision benefits to employees and their families can further motivate employees to stay with a company for longer. 

3. Paid Annual Leave and Holidays: Paid leaves and holidays help employees rejuvenate themselves and rejoin work with a better focus and energy.

4. Reimbursement of Benefits: Some companies offer employee benefits such as transportation costs or providing ‘Work from Home’ funds where employees get reimbursed for items they buy to make their home work space more comfortable. 

5. Flexible Work Hours: Flexible work hours, including the choice of working from home is another perk. This way, employees can arrange their lives and schedule according to their preferences and maintain a healthy work life balance and prevent employee burnouts

6. Free Parking: Various companies either provide reserved parking spaces or parking allowances (tax-exempted) to employees.

7. Office Furniture: These days, the thought of sticking to their desk is difficult for employees. Placing sofas, bean bags or even standing work tables in the office space help employees move and work with freedom. 

8. Gym facility: Many companies provide a gym facility for their health-conscious employees, who can blow off some steam or reduce stress by working out and staying fit. 

9. Incentives and Bonuses: Having profit sharing or project incentives can help employees stay focused so they are less likely to be worried about extra income. In addition to that, significant 13th month yearly bonus based on performance or during holidays are also attractions for employees.

10. Wellness activities and Trainings: Providing free training for employees might help motivate them to further their knowledge in their careers and even empower them to move up their desired career path. Hosting company wide activities also help take care of employees’ well-being and mental health.

Types of leaves in Malaysia

According to laws, there are four types of leaves in Malaysia for employees: 

1. Annual Leave: 8 days/year (with 1-2 years of experience); 12 days/year (with 2-5 years of experience); 16 days/year (with over 5 years of experience)

2. Public Holidays: There are usually 18 federal public holidays in Malaysia.

3. Sick Leave: 12 days/year (less than 2 years of experience); 18 days/year (2-5 years of experience); 22 days/year (over 5 years of experience).

4. Maternity and Paternity Leave: Women employees are entitled to 90 consecutive days of maternity leave while recently, the number of Paternity leave for new fathers have increased from 3 days to 7 days by the Malaysian government.