Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.’s 2021 Workplace Benefits Awards win is generating discussion and the sharing of ideas with other WBA recipients and nominees, says Merlyn Sequeira, the organization’s director of total rewards, payroll, recognition, wellness and human resources systems.
“There were a few ideas that came from those discussions which I thought I could leverage and bring back to Samsung.”
Read: Samsung snags award for health, wellness program for all life stages
The technology company’s wellness program and enhanced mental-health benefits won the Health/wellness program award for employers with fewer than 1,000 employees. In a bid to support the health and wellness of generation Z, millennial, generation X and baby boomer employees and their dependants amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis, Sequeira and her team significantly ramped up virtual communications to educate staff on the offerings available to them to ensure they felt supported.
“What I was most interested in was communication because every day we’re sending emails, but I wanted to bring it all together in a portal where it’s just one go-to place for employees.”
The company also introduced gender affirmation coverage and a full flexible benefits rollout. “[We want] to ensure we’re as progressive as possible because we are in the [technology] sector and potential employees are looking at what we offer in our benefits plan. We have to be competitive to the external market to attract the right talent.”
Read: Award finalists discuss mental health, enhanced communications amid pandemic
Communication is key to all of Samsung’s benefits and wellness programs, says Sequeira, noting the company mailed postcards to employees’ houses announcing the new benefits and held information sessions where employees’ spouses were invited to make it an inclusive discussion involving family members.
Samsung also hosts “be heard interviews” through which leaders were hearing a lot about mental health and employees looking for more resources during the pandemic. “We had some savings through our benefits plan and invested all of it back into mental health. We increased all our mental-health practitioners. We used to have a $500 [annual maximum], but we changed it to $2,000 per employee.”
The WBA win has also re-emphasized positive employee feedback on Samsung’s benefits, adds Sequeira. “At exit interviews, we always hear how our benefits are great, so it was good to sort of combine the two — [receiving] external recognition [along with] what our employees are saying.”
Enter the 2022 Workplace Benefits Awards here. The deadline is June 30.