Building a great remuneration package for your team

There was a time when what salary you paid a team member was the only reward a business owner or company director had to think about when remunerating their team.

However those days have long gone and most small business owners now have to view the whole package in order to attract and keep their best team members.

Flexible working arrangements such as flexi time or working from home are common place. Generous bonus schemes can also incentivise team members. There are however a lot of other simple measures an employer can take to make the overall remuneration package attractive, some of which incur little extra cost. Below are a number of simple examples to act on.

Pensions

The government’s introduction of compulsory pension contributions has resulted in increased costs to the employer but has ensured that more individuals have a pension plan in place for their eventual retirement. Under the current legislation the employer must now make a minimum 3% employer contribution and the employee must contribute 5%. The 3% is however the minimum so there is nothing to stop the employer offering more.

Cars

Company cars used to be highly attractive as a perk but many now give rise to huge benefits in kind and tax liabilities. Electric cars however attract very low benefits in kind and are definitely worth considering in any package.

Life Cover

Death in service benefit is a great non-taxable benefit for an employee or a director. This is effectively life cover paid for by the company which attracts tax relief on the premiums for the company but any pay out is tax free for the next of kin. This is a must for directors and employees who have young families.

Medical

Another attractive perk is medical benefits. There are many providers on the market and the cover they provide can be very generous, including online doctor appointments, dental care, alternative medical treatment as well as a whole host of other potential medical benefits. For negligible cost you can cover your team member’s partner and children as well. Medical benefits are taxable and a form P11d will need to be completed for each director or employee covered, however the upside in cover for your team and their loved ones can be an extremely valuable benefit and can show to your team that their welfare and that of their families is important to you.

Other remuneration benefits

Other taxable benefits could include a corporate gym membership.

Non taxable benefits could include occasional team lunches where the payments made by the employer (provided they are £50 or less per employee) can be covered using the trivial benefit regime.

The above is just a selection of ideas to build an attractive remuneration package to retain your key team members. Keeping key team members is essential for growth and to maintain the value of the business. By offering a diverse range of benefits you demonstrate to your team their worth to you. If you are a client of Friend & Grant and are interested in death in service benefits, pensions or medical benefits please speak to your account manager. If you are not a client of Friend & Grant then why not book up a discovery meeting to discuss the many ways we help our clients to grow their businesses and save tax and time.

The content in this blog is correct as at 10 January 2022 See terms and conditions.