A new health report, Business of Health 2020 by Aetna International highlights that only 22 percent of employees in Singapore are satisfied with the health and wellness benefits provided to them.  Despite the majority of business in Singapore (93 percent) wanting employees to prioritize their physical and mental health over work, most employees do not believe the current support they are offered is good enough.

Contrary to the above finding, the report found that 60 percent of HR directors and employers rated the availability of health and wellness benefits as good, highlighting the gap in perception between HR and employees.

Further, a majority of employers (68 percent) felt that enough is being done to support stressed employees and only 12 percent of employers rated access to direct support for stress as poor. Similarly, only 18 percent of employers rated the company’s current mental health support as poor.

Derek Goldberg, Managing Director of Aetna International, APAC, said: “We are seeing a clear gap emerging both globally and in Singapore between the level of corporate health and wellness support that businesses believe they are providing, and the perceptions of their workforces. This misalignment may be having an impact on employee well-being and business productivity.”

When asked about their concerns regarding their future health, stress was ranked as their top concern, with 88 percent of employees indicating some level of concern that it could one day impact their ability to work. When it came to support for stress, while 43 percent agreed that existing support is adequate, even more employees (37 percent) rated access to direct support as poor. Similarly, about a third (34 percent) of employees rated their company’s current mental health support as poor.

Significantly, two-thirds (67 percent) of workers stated that they would not join a company if it did not have a clear policy on supporting those with mental health issues, including stress, anxiety or depression, reflecting the priorities of today’s jobseekers.

Of the benefits and policies employees felt will help improve their health and well-being, flexible working hours is cited as the top benefit by 65 percent of workers. Yet only 13 percent of HR directors believe this benefit has a positive impact on employee attraction and retention.

Apart from flexible working hours, employees cited stress reduction programs and services as their second preferred benefit (45 percent), followed by access to gym at work (44 percent).