Corporate welfare full steam ahead, according to a research by the Catholic University based on 335 interviews with Human Resources managers, conducted by Prof. Luca Pesenti, professor of Social Organizations and Plural Welfare. the investigation, The future of corporate welfare after the 2016 stability law, promoted by Welfare Company – company HERE! Group specializing in welfare solutions - was created thanks to the collaboration of AIDP - the Italian Association for Personnel Management - with a structured questionnaire using the CAWI (Computer Assisted Web Interview) interview technique and presented in Milan on 20 September.
The survey demonstrates that 71,4% of the companies in the sample have one or more welfare services/benefits internally. Managers and white collars are the categories that benefit the most (over 65% of cases), while blue collars are in last place (46,7%). If we exclude canteens/bust vouchers and flexible hours (historically more widespread), the five most widespread categories of benefits are: Health care (42,5%) - Consumer agreements and concessions (35,2%) - Permits paternity (25%) - Benefits for children's studies (23,2%) - Smart working (22,9%).
The companies that provide welfare are those of the North West and of larger dimensions. The rate of unionization and the trend of the employed are less relevant. From an organizational point of view, companies tend to manage welfare plans in house. 81% of those who have an active Plan built it through agreements with individual suppliers. 18,1% instead used a service provider, 3% the services offered by trade associations and 5,5% created a business network for managing the Plan. Consequently, the management of the Plan mostly provides for the purchase of services directly from suppliers (56,1%) or the reimbursement of expenses (42,1). However, the menu portal is present in almost one out of three companies.
Weaknesses: little use of employee needs analysis (23,8% of companies that have an active plan). The reasons for NOT activating the Welfare Plan? First of all the costs, economic and organizational (referred to by over 70% of companies). In this regard, Chiara Fogliani, managing director of Welfare Company, comments: “The research reveals that 7 out of 10 companies do not introduce welfare plans because they fear it would be costly from an economic/management point of view. But it is a myth that needs to be debunked: thanks to tax relief, 1000 euros that a company provides in the form of welfare services instead of cash benefits result in savings of 350 euros for the company and an extra 180 euros in payroll for the employee, who obtains a 'net' benefit”.
The prospects of the new 2016 Stability Law
Strong appreciation for the expansion of the types of tax-free benefits and the elimination of the deductibility limit within 5×1000 of personnel costs; for the freedom of choice recognized to the employee between productivity bonus and conversion into benefit. In general, less interest is aroused by the new voucher tool and the removal of the voluntary constraint. In the face of the new opportunities provided for by the law, companies are taking action: only 8,2% of the sample does not foresee interventions in the future, while 33,2% is already working towards the creation of a plan. The companies where there is already an active welfare plan are decidedly more "reactive": almost 4 out of 10 are already working to expand the offer.
Comments Isabella Covili Faggioli, National President of AIDP “The regulation certainly allows companies to look with greater benevolence at the adoption of company welfare plans, but it should not be read only as an opportunity for saving. The new corporate welfare represents a prodigious tool for loyalty and attention to the needs of the worker, especially in years of crisis and shortcomings of the social system. It proves to be an excellent tool for creating that fiduciary pact whereby the worker will give the added value that the company needs to stay on the markets and to overcome international challenges. Creating an environment where the well-being of the worker is among the main objectives leads directly to the success of the company.”
In fact, the vast majority of companies assume that they will intervene mainly on issues of work-life balance. More than three out of ten companies intend to intervene on the issues of support for education and supplementary healthcare. The opinion on the possibility of using the company network tool for the management of plans was very positive: over half of the companies could evaluate its feasibility in the future.
Isabella Covili Faggioli, AIDP National President: “The widening of interest and adoption of corporate welfare plans, as well as the increase in the number and weight of the figure of the welfare manager, or of experiences such as the Fincantieri Welfare Day or the Confindustria Cuneo Observatory with CGIL-CISL-UIL, for the professional family I represent they mean a lot. They testify and confirm that we are moving from bargaining to productive negotiation. A virtuous circle to go through together: social forces, business and institutions. Of course, returning to the norm, we would like the population concerned to be expanded in terms of income, and the package offered to be enriched. Just as there are obstacles to its diffusion, not least the competition that would come from the detaxation of monetary productivity bonuses which are being studied by the Government, but the judgment, as the research confirms in practice, is generally very positive.
