The pandemic’s arrival shifted the perspective on long-standing workplace norms. Many workers gained newfound flexibility that was previously unthinkable. While widespread remote work was the most significant change, there were smaller aberrations, too. Gone were formal dress codes and rigid schedules. Suddenly, employees could decide all manner of things, from what they wanted to wear to when they wanted to work.
“The pandemic opened up a whole new perspective on choice,” said Ashley Summers, Vice President of Customer Success at PEAR Health Labs, provider of the leading comprehensive fitness solution, Aaptiv.
The intersection of workplace flexibility and fitness benefits
Since those early days of the pandemic, many of the workforce norms that disappeared have made a slow but definite return. Yet workers’ desire for choice, freedom and flexibility remains strong. In fact, it’s a growing expectation that has extended well beyond the realm of work arrangements. Employees want more control in nearly every element of their professional lives, and that includes their benefits.
A new survey from Aaptiv and HR Dive’s studioID explored the intersection of workplace flexibility and fitness benefits. In it, more than 150 HR leaders from companies with 2,500 employees or more shared the fitness benefits their employers do and do not offer, how their employees use them and the return those offerings provide.
The survey findings revealed that fitness benefits offering more choice and customization drive more employee use and are more rewarding than one-size-fits-all options.
Key survey findings:
- Which fitness benefits employers offer most often (or plan to).
- The popularity of fitness benefits based on employee use.
- What barriers employees face when it comes to using fitness benefits.
The survey’s findings continually highlighted the importance of flexibility, personalization and comprehensiveness — qualities that encourage fitness offerings’ widespread use, Summers said.
“If an organization offers a benefit that’s just focused on running, it’s missing a whole group of people who walk, use a bike, use an elliptical or like to lift weights – or even those who aren’t currently active but want to start,” Summers said. “If we’re thinking about a company trying to find ways to help their employees be happier and healthier, there’s a missed opportunity.”
Flexible fitness benefits equip, motivate and empower employees to exercise — but that’s not their only outcome. Survey respondents observed strong connections between certain benefits — like fitness incentives and free or discounted fitness coaching — and increased productivity, decreased employee turnover and lower healthcare costs.
Flexible benefits are also popular among employees. Fitness benefits used by more than two-thirds of respondents’ employees include:
- Free or discounted wearable devices (76%)
- Free or discounted access to a fitness app (74%)
- On-site exercise opportunities (74%)
- Group fitness challenges (68%)
- Free or discounted fitness coaching (67%)
- Individual fitness incentives (67%)
Fitness apps with versatile content, for example, can satisfy a broad range of fitness interests and abilities. Sophisticated apps will offer everything from sweat-inducing HIIT classes to gentle yoga sessions. Their content will range from five minutes to beyond an hour. They’ll offer basics for beginners and more advanced options for those who need a challenge. In other words, they’ll include something for everyone.
“As human beings, we want choice,” Summers said, noting that flexible fitness offerings help satisfy employees’ strong demand for flexibility and agency. “And we’re seeing a new level of choice being delivered, both in the way fitness is approached and the way benefits are approached in general.”
Download the full survey report here.
Aaptiv: A Comprehensive Fitness and Wellness Solution
Aaptiv’s all-in-one solution offers seamless administration, tracks employee engagement, and delivers personalized programs tailored to every fitness level —all at a monthly cost significantly lower than that of traditional wellness stipends. With an extensive selection of over 10,000 on-demand classes spanning 16 fitness and wellness categories, plus access to a network of over 20,000 national and local gyms, employees get exactly what they want and need to improve their health and well-being.
