As entrepreneurs of small and medium-sized businesses, we all know how important our employees are. From customer facing officers to back-of-house employees, every single one of the people we hire help keep our business afloat. This is why it is very important to look after each and every single one of our employees.

But it isn’t practical for an entrepreneur to speak to every employee and motivate them individually. That would take up too much of their time which could have been spent bettering the business. Furthermore, this approach might not work for all individuals.

Numerous studies have shown that people like to work for companies whose vision they believe in and that offers a good compensation and benefits package. Now that you have employees who believe in what your business does and why you do it, it’s time to ensure that your employees thrive in their environment by reassessing your compensation and benefits package.

If you’re feeling a bit lost as to what benefits to include for your employees, investing in employee benefit consulting can help point you in the right direction. But here are a few things that you may want to take a look at to ensure your business runs smoothly by keeping your employees rewarded well.

Addressing the gender pay gap

Most of the disgruntlement with employees, especially female employees, is that their wages are lower than those of their male counterparts. While the gender pay gap usually occurs on a larger scale among bigger and more established businesses, there are some small and medium enterprises that are guilty of paying female employees less than their male co-workers.

Address any discrepancies by understanding why it’s happening, then consider reassessing your HR policies and procedures surrounding salaries. Talk to your employees through a focus group discussion to help uncover any additional issues surrounding pay.

Offer flexible working options

The working environment has changed a lot since the arrival of the internet. Now that internet speeds are more stable and strong in multiple areas of the US, more and more businesses are open to employees working from home. Flexible working options can be a part of your company’s compensation and benefits package.

If your business allows you to, having compressed hours, reduced hours, as well as work from home options can be part of the benefits employees get from their time with your company. Flexible working options can be a way to improve the atmosphere of your business and increase employee engagement.

Provide more ways to deal with stress

While physical health is important to being able to do their work responsibilities, being mentally healthy allows your employees to fulfill those responsibilities continuously. Employees can experience workplace stress no matter how fun your work environment might be. And for those who have a diagnosed mental health condition, they might find it more difficult to manage.

Including mental health in your company’s healthcare package is a great way to ensure your employees are not just physically fit, but also mentally well-adjusted to the work demands. You can also look at other avenues to provide the assistance your employees may need, like a mental health day, or even mindfulness classes.