Regardless of which phase of the pandemic lifecycle we are in, an organisation’s people should be at the heart of its response strategy. The following are some key areas you should consider to ensure continual functioning of your business without jeopardising the wellbeing of your employees.

Mental Health, Resilience & Wellbeing

Financial Advice

Employee Assistance Programs

Employee Communications Strategy

Return to Work Support

Employee Health & Benefits Choice and Flexibility

Mental Health, Resilience & Wellbeing

According to Heads Up, mental illness impacts 1 in 5 people, with many workplaces now recognizing that keeping their employees safe at work does not just mean physically but mentally as well.

The current Covid-19 situation is unprecedented with many now concerned about both the health impacts and financial impacts of this pandemic. It is very likely that employees will be experiencing elevated levels of stress and anxiety; therefore it is critical to ensure that your managers, supervisors and employees understand Mental Health.

The Mercer Marsh Benefits team can support your business with a variety of Mental Health, Wellbeing and Resilience training courses, including courses specifically tailored for frontline leaders to give them the skills and confidence to effectively manage mental health issues in the workplace.

Our programs are also tailored to your industry to ensure that they are relevant to the business environment in which your employees operate.

Financial Advice

With COVID-19 significantly shifting the landscape for businesses, naturally many employees may worry about the future or have financial concerns that they would benefit from speaking to an expert about. Experts in Mercer’s Wealth Business can help employees navigate the fast-shifting landscape in the current circumstances. This can be executed on a one-to-one basis for a specific subset of employees or in a more programmatic manner to large groups of employees.

Employee Assistance Programs

In the current Covid-19 situation, many employees are deeply concerned about both the health impacts and financial impacts of this pandemic. Employers and Employees are likely to experience heightened levels of stress, anxiety, mental health issues and conflict at home during times of a crisis.

Employee assistance programs (EAP) provide direct counselling to employees to enhance the emotional, mental and general psychological wellbeing of all employees including immediate family members.

Mercer Marsh Benefits (MMB) works with a team of highly experienced Psychologists and Counsellors who can provide employees with a safe, confidential space where they can seek professional advice and support of counselling. EAP services can also be provided to employees’ direct family members at the discretion of the employer.

MMB specializes in the provision of effective short-term solution focused counselling interventions, usually over three sessions. Upon identification of more significant long term counselling needs, we can refer clients to a large network of agencies and psychologists for further assistance to ensure continuity and effective care.

Employee Communications Strategy

Employees should know senior leaders are monitoring the spread of the virus and are ready to escalate response actions as needed. Equipping employees with information about the progress of the outbreak, how the employer is responding, efforts by governments and public health officials to combat it, and using the right tone in communications can provide comfort to employees, correct misconceptions, and limit fear and anxiety.

Leveraging Darwin technology to do so, takes manual tasks and digitizes them, speeding up processes, reducing errors, and improving employee experience and understanding. A strategic staff communication plan, assisted by technology, provides needed advice to manage communications and ensure accuracy, engagement and consistency of message.

Return to Work Support

COVID-19 will have a material impact on every business in Asia. That impact may be a positive or negative. Some businesses such as supermarkets and certain manufacturing businesses will thrive, whilst most others will be going through tough times. What is clear however is all employers in Asia will be managing their way through a situation never before experienced, with employees that are uncertain around their future.

Cost is minimized if employers can return their employees back to work in a timely manner. Change management advisory, emotional resilience training and health checks all can help facilitate a smooth and expedited return to work experience.

The Mercer Marsh Benefits team of specialists are supported by a panel of health professionals across Asia focused at achieving exceptional Return to Work or Redeployment outcomes.

Employee Health & Benefits Choice and Flexibility

Businesses today not only compete for customers, they also compete for employees. Yet attracting, retaining, and maximizing productivity of talent can be as challenging as building the business.

When Asia makes it through this pandemic and businesses impacted by COVID-19 start to re-build, there will be increased competition for talent across all industries. The Mercer Marsh Benefit’s experienced team of professionals can help you to differentiate your organization by taking the time to understand the unique needs of your business and the problems you are facing. We can then develop a customized employee benefits program – with a single source for managing the associated costs, risks, and complexities.

The result? A collaborative based approach providing a competitive benefits program that can better serve your employees, who in turn, help your business thrive in a competitive marketplace. Our specialist team can support our clients by arranging:

• Group Life, Disability and Salary Continuance Insurance
• Private Health Insurance – Fully / part subsidized or Voluntary
• Group Personal Accident and Sickness Insurance
• International Health Insurance – For Expatriates and non-residents.

We are here for you

As COVID-19 continues to affect how we all do business and interact with one another, we are committed to continue to deliver timely and relevant information to our clients and broader community. If you have any questions or would like to have a conversation about the impact coronavirus is having on your business, please reach out to your Marsh representative, or email us here.

The information contained in this page provides only a general overview of subjects covered, is not intended to be taken as advice regarding any individual situation and should not be relied upon as such. Insureds should consult their insurance and legal advisors regarding specific coverage issues. All insurance coverage is subject to the terms, conditions, and exclusions of the applicable individual policies. Marsh cannot provide any assurance that insurance can be obtained for any particular client or for any particular risk. Statements concerning tax, accounting, and legal matters should be understood to be general observations based solely on our experience as insurance brokers and risk consultants and should not be relied upon as tax, accounting, or legal advice, which we are not authorized to provide. All such matters should be reviewed with your own qualified tax, accounting, and legal advisors.