Almost 54% employees are always under financial stress and spend time thinking about personal financial issues at work, impacting productivity at the workplace.  There is also the issue of mismatch between what employees perceive as employment benefits and what the employer actually offers.

These disturbing gaps in white collar staffers work life come out in the PNB MetLife Employee Benefits Trend Study 2015.  The study was based on a survey among employers and employees in India to gain insights into employee loyalty, financial concerns, talent retention and productivity.

The study was based on a survey among employers and employees in India to gain insights into employee loyalty, financial concerns, talent retention and productivity. It covers the perspective of both employees and employers and has been conducted in India by Nielsen. The study is based on a pan-India survey sample consisting of 323 employers and 2,432 employees split across small and medium enterprises, medium and large Indian corporates and multi-national companies.

The findings revealed that employees in India seek benefits that will help provide protection coverage in order to help ease their financial concerns.

It said while 63 per cent of Indian employees believed their employer offered life insurance, only 30 per cent employers actually were offering the same. It said the biggest financial concern of employees in India is financial security of their family in case of premature death.

Nearly 54 per cent spent time thinking about personal financial issues at work and that reduced their engagement in the workplace. For example, 65 per cent of the employees surveyed are worried about their family's financial security in case of their premature death. This was followed by concerns about health care costs and child's education expenses.

According to the survey, 73 per cent of the employees seek life insurance as a key protection product and 61 per cent would buy life insurance without support from employers. But some employees were willing to opt for voluntary benefits if costs were shared with their employer.

From the employers front the revealing aspect was about staff retention. According to the study, 70 per cent of Indian employers feel highly challenged to retain employees. Only 51 per cent of employees are satisfied with their current job with 47 per cent saying they will look for another job within the next year.

It also says that employees are not as loyal as their employers think. Only 53% of employees are loyal to their employers. The survey found that if the benefits packages being offered were improved, 55% of the employees are ready to stay in the same job. Of this, 62% want an increase in salary and 45% want a contribution from their employees for their retirement plan.