Employer-sponsored Savings and Spending Accounts and Other Benefits May Minimize "The Great Resignation”

Like everything else, employee benefits, especially healthcare benefits, have been affected by the pandemic. With the extreme focus on health in the public space, consumers and employees are more engaged with their benefits, especially healthcare benefits, than ever before.  While the historic labor shifts across the United States currently being dubbed “The Great Resignation” are driven by a diverse range of factors, according to a recent survey by Pew Research Center, roughly half of those surveyed cited benefits as either a “major” or “minor” reason why they quit a job during 2021.

Employers should consider this to be an opportunity to reevaluate the benefits they offer. Well-designed health benefits plans can aid businesses in meeting their objectives by improving a company’s bottom line, as well as attracting and retaining the best talent. In this unique environment, here is some valuable information to help you evaluate your benefits offerings.

How Dependent Care FSAs Prioritize Parenting & Work-Life Balance

The pandemic has been especially difficult for working parents, with Pew citing that almost 50% of those who quit in 2021 did so at least in part due to childcare issues. One possible solution is to offer employees the opportunity to opt into a dependent care flexible spending account (DC-FSA). A DC-FSA covers qualified daycare expenses for children younger than age 13 and adult dependents who are incapable of caring for themselves and is a great tool for budgeting daycare expenses. With the tight labor market, DC-FSAs are an excellent attraction and retention tool for employers to explore. Augmenting employee benefits packages with a DC-FSA option sends a strong message to employees that their employer cares about their work-life balance.

For more information about DC-FSAs, read my earlier blog for NEEBC “Dependent Care FSAs: How they can support your employees.”

Reposition Health Savings Accounts as a Retirement Savings Tool

Another example of how employers can rethink their benefits offerings is to reposition the Health Savings Account (HSA) as a retirement savings tool and consider opportunities to increase employee engagement. According to Devenir’s 2021 Year-End HSA Research Report, roughly 1 in 5 (21%) HSA accounts were unfunded in 2021. Encouraging employees to save using their HSA promotes employee health and financial well-being, and helps employers achieve near- and long-term cost savings. Employers should consider bringing the investment opportunity with HSAs to the forefront of the conversation to spotlight its potential to shape and secure both employer and employees’ health and financial future.

Maximize Health Savings Accounts Through Incentives or Matching

Another way employers can encourage enrollment in a high deductible health plan (HDHP) with HSA is through changes to their plan design, such as offering incentives or matching contributions. An HSA incentive structure such as matching or seed contribution encourages an “active” employee role, similar to 401(k) matching programs. This type of structure can significantly increase HSA account balances, save employers money, and improve the perceived value of benefits and retirement readiness. Offering HSAs with automatic or earned money is a further incentive for employees to enroll in high-deductible health plans and contribute their own money to their HSAs.


The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly impacted the mindset of consumers on health and well-being and has been a financial wake-up call that’s prompted many Americans to rethink how they plan for their futures and how they take care of their health today. For employers, this means reconsidering the types of benefits that they offer their employees, considering an HSA contribution match or incentive program to increase employee engagement, and redefining how the benefits they offer can impact their employees’ savings for retirement. With some simple shifts and continued communication with employees, employers can take advantage of this period of heightened consumer interest and engagement in benefits to re-energize their employees.


Kevin Robertson, Chief Revenue Officer, HSA Bank

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