According to the figures from Specsavers Corporate Eyecare, three-quarters of employers (75%) state their focus on wellbeing has increased in recent years. A significant 61% spend more than 1% of their wellbeing budget on eyecare and 19% of employers allocate more than 5% of their wellbeing budget to eyecare.   

Jim Lythgow, director of strategic alliances at Specsavers Corporate Eyecare, said: “A few years ago these results might well have been surprising, but employers are coming to understand the significant role eyecare can play in the health and wellbeing of employees.”

While employers are becoming more and more aware of the positive effects of eyecare, cost and quality are still a very important element of eyecare provision when choosing a supplier. Cost is the most important consideration for over half (56%) of employers. Some 47% stated quality as being vital, and 36% said flexibility was a deciding factor in choosing a supplier. These were followed in importance by ease of access to stores (32%), administration time required (27%) and reputation of supplier (25%).

Lythgow continued: “The key to eyecare provision is communication – from eyecare specialist to employer, and from employer to employee – to explain the benefits. When asked about the most important aspect in choosing a supplier, just 15% said they look for help in communicating the eyecare policy to staff. However, in practice, this can be a big differentiator in terms of ROI – employers that are good at communicating their benefits demonstrate their value and this is the key in engaging a workforce.”