financial benefits retirement employee family may health

Why your employee benefits are more crucial now than ever### Financial stability in an unpredictable worldYour employer may offer employee benefits (perhaps they refer to these as‘group arrangements’). However, you may not realise exactly what thesebenefits are, or how essential they are to you.The past year has been an exceptionally tough time for families, businesses,and the world in general.Financial health (not to mention physical health) has been extremely difficultto maintain.In times of high pressure and stress, you may be tempted to dip into yoursavings, decrease contributions to retirement funds, or cancel these productsoutright.However, it is exactly in these times when good financial products – backed byexpert advice on how to maximise their potential – can see you throughdifficult times.### A typical employee benefit package includes both financial and healthbenefitsThese often cover not just the employee, but the employee’s family too.A benefits package from Alexander Forbes offers financial advice to helpfamilies manage their day-to-day expenses, make big financial decisions, andplan for the future.This means that you can live comfortably within your means. With goodfinancial planning, you can even have money left over to save.Tax-efficient savings and investment products will help you make the most ofyour money, regardless of how much you earn.### Financial benefitsFinancial stability means you can plan for everything: * From things you don’t want to happen, such as retrenchment or illness * And things you hope will happen, such as buying a house or sending your children to tertiary institutions * To things that will inevitably happen, such as retirement### Health servicesIn addition to financial services, a benefits package from Alexander Forbesalso offers health services, which may extend to spouses and dependants.Medical aid advice helps your family choose the best cover for your needs.Life and disability cover ensures that your family is protected shouldanything happen to you or your spouse.And some employee assistance programmes will even include counselling toensure your mental and emotional well-being.### Retirement savingsEmployers often have a contribution matching policy, which means that forevery Rand you contribute to your employer’s retirement fund, your employerwill contribute one Rand more.This helps you accumulate retirement savings in half the time. The employercontribution also generally covers the cost of benefits and fund expenses.Additionally, as part of a workplace fund, you’ll get institutional rates,which are not available to individuals.This means that your savings and investments will cost you less in managementfees, giving you more room for growth.At Alexander Forbes, we partner with employers to personalise your employeebenefits with these expert solutions.We also provide financial literacy training throughout your working life – andbeyond. Together, these can help you and your family maintain financial andphysical well-being throughout your lives.Now that’s something you can count on.