Humi is supporting employees with an annual $500 employer match to its group registered retirement savings plan and fertility drug coverage.
Andrea Bartlett, the human resources software company’s vice-president of people, says Humi hopes to change the match to a percentage of employees’ contributions in the near future. After announcing the match, the company saw a 45 per cent increase in enrolment in the program between December 2022 and January 2023.
More than 80 per cent of Humi employees enrolled in the group RRSP are under the age of 35 and nearly all (94 per cent) members selected the target-date fund recommended through the platform. Bartlett believes increased interest among younger workers in retirement savings vehicles is a rising trend.
Read: Employer match top motivating factor in saving for retirement
“Ultimately, it comes down to what folks are seeing in terms of stability or instability in the economy [and] job market. I’m starting to see that priorities are shifting more towards [saving for] retirement as opposed to . . . homeownership and [other lifestyle events].”
Last October, the company also expanded its benefits program to include a lifetime maximum of $2,500 for fertility drugs.
Both new benefits were the result of an internal survey, conducted in the summer of 2022, which found 70 per cent of employees said an employer match to the RRSP was their No. 1 choice among new benefits and perks they’d like to see, followed by fertility benefits coverage.
“We really speak to our team about . . . what other companies . . . in our industry [are doing],” says Bartlett, noting in 2020, the company also invested in mental-health and wellness resources in response to the coronavirus pandemic and the effects it was having on employee well-being. “[Nearly] three years later, we’re now investing in . . . retirement savings and financial [wellness tools].”
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