How benefits can bring a breath of fresh air

Employees are increasingly contemplating their “employer of choice” and this doesn’t always mean that they are looking for monetary gain. Being an employer with attractive employee benefits and taking steps to reduce your carbon footprint could increase employee retention, and keep your skilled workforce happy. Let us demonstrate how employee benefits can help you emphasise your company’s culture and values.

Cycle to Work (Workplace Bikes)

Arguably the most renowned employee benefit for reducing CO2 emissions, cycle to work schemes are better than cost neutral; no administration charge for you whilst generating savings on National Insurance (NI) contributions for each employee on the scheme.

Employees benefit from tax and NI savings, have the use of a brand new cycle and safety equipment, knowledge that they are reducing emissions and revelling in a healthier lifestyle - all of which will boost morale and productivity.

Green Car Scheme (Workplace Cars)

The use of a brand new car is inevitably going to be attractive to your workforce. We suggest changing your standard car scheme to a green car scheme, offering ultra-low emission vehicles only. Whilst bringing you NI savings, and preferential benefit in kind (BiK) tax savings for your employees, you are helping to cut that all important carbon footprint.

All costs for this scheme are completely transparent and will bring employees significant savings on the cost of running and maintaining a car, all for the good of the environment.

Season Ticket Loan (Workplace Transport)

To widen your range of carbon cutting options, a season ticket loan for employees encourages the use of public transport and reduces CO2 emissions from the use of standard vehicles. This is particularly attractive to employees commuting in urbanised areas, where the upfront cost of a season ticket can be daunting.

You can offer ticket loans, interest free, whilst being protected by our HMRC compliant salary deduction agreement.

Charity Donation Scheme (Wider Giving)

Think outside the box; allowing employees to donate to charities can help them offset their carbon footprint. A charity donation scheme makes it easier for employees to donate, and easier for charities to receive donations. If you are running a carbon footprint campaign let employees know they can offset their footprint by making donations, for example, to a wildlife trust.

Taking matters beyond benefits…

Whilst on the journey to creating or enhancing your company’s culture and values, bare in mind a few ideas to solidify your carbon footprint agenda and sustainability.

  1. Encourage car sharing between employees.
  2. Encourage recycling and paperless meetings.
  3. Encourage departments to source stationery and materials that are made from recycled materials.

Our ethical and environmental policy outlines how we commit to responsibility for our impact on the environment, to operate in a sustainable manner and have a positive effect on communities across the country.

We are proud to be carbon-neutral and for several years we have offset our carbon footprint by making donations to Worcestershire Wildlife Trust. The WWT uses our donations to fund the growth and maintenance of local woodlands, preserving green areas for future generations.

To further demonstrate our commitment to being an ethical organisation, we have set up Wider Community, a charitable foundation that supports our community.

For further information about our services please contact our sales team on 0800 612 9015, or contact us.