Are Your Benefits Inclusive? 

The gap between what employees need and what organizations actually offer is more than a missed opportunity—it’s a barrier to inclusivity 

A great benefits package is more than just a HDHP and a 401(k). While those are important, they’re the baseline. The benefits that truly make a difference are the ones that show your company sees its employees as whole people, with lives and needs that extend beyond traditional benefits.  

An inclusive benefits package reflects the understanding that your team is made up of unique individuals from diverse backgrounds. It’s designed to support everyone, no matter their family structure, identity, or personal challenges. Because at the end of the day, inclusivity goes beyond leadership and workplace policies; it extends to the health and wellness benefits your organization offers your people.  

Inclusive Support for Parents and Caregivers

Employees shouldn’t have to choose between their job and their family. Inclusive benefits for caregivers are not just compassionate—they’re strategic. With family planning benefits, financial assistance programs, and parent and caregiver support as some of the top benefit preferences for Gen Z, it’s time to consider evaluating your current benefits package, and how inclusive it really is.  

Think beyond standard maternity leave. What about parental leave that applies to all new parents, including fathers, adoptive parents, and those using a surrogate? 

Inclusive support also means recognizing that caregiving isn’t limited to childcare. Many employees are part of the “sandwich generation,” caring for both children and aging parents. Consider some of the ways your organization could adopt more inclusive benefits for your employees in this area: 

• Flexible Leave Policies: Consider offering paid family leave that can be used for a new child, a sick family member, or an aging parent. 92% of respondents from the 2025 Benefits Insights Report agree or strongly agree this benefit demonstrates empathy. 
• Childcare and Eldercare Support: Providing subsidies, backup care options, or access to services that help employees find reliable care. 90% of respondents agree or strongly agree support offerings like paid after school programs or daycare benefits demonstrates empathy.  
• Flexible Work Arrangements: Allowing flexible hours or remote work options can be a significant lifeline for caregivers juggling multiple responsibilities.  

Benefits that Support LGBTQIA+ Employees

Creating an inclusive environment for LGBTQIA+ employees means ensuring your benefits offer tangible support that affirms their identity, family structures, and lives. 

A critical area to examine is your health insurance plan. Does it cover treatments and services that are essential to the well-being of your LGBTQIA+ team members, such as gender-affirming care, and family planning benefits? Other areas to explore include: 

• Gender-Affirming Care: Providing gender-affirming coverage is a powerful act of equity that shows your commitment to supporting every employee’s health and authentic self. 
• Equitable Policies: Use inclusive language in all company policies and forms (e.g., using “parental leave” instead of “maternity/paternity leave” and providing options for pronouns). 
• Specialized Mental Health Services: More than 4,000 U.S. employees responded to Mercer’s Inside Employees’ Minds survey  ranking a list of 16 concerns that might keep them up at night or prevent them from focusing at work. While mental health was ranked fifth overall, among LGBTQIA employees, it ranked second. Consider how you can expand your mental healthcare offerings to support employees who may benefit from more specialized mental health support. 
• Family-Building Benefits: This is a powerful way to show that your organization supports all paths to parenthood. It demonstrates a real commitment to equity by ensuring that everyone, regardless of their orientation or identity, has the same opportunity to create a family. 

Prioritizing Mental Health for Everyone

For a long time, mental health was the elephant in the room.  But in the past few years, people have started to look to their employers for more mental health support, demonstrating that for many employees, mental well-being is just as important as physical health.   

Not to mention that missed work due to poor mental health is estimated to cost the economy $47.6 billion annually in lost productivity, according to Gallup. Benefits designed for employees in need of mental health support heighten inclusivity for  

Examples of inclusive support for mental health: 

• Accessible Mental Health Coverage: Offer plans with low or no-cost therapy sessions and easy access to mental health professionals. 
• Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs): Provide confidential EAPs that offer counseling, resources, and referrals for a range of issues, from stress and anxiety to substance use. 
• Mental Health Days: Normalize taking time off for mental health by offering dedicated mental health days or flexible personal days.
• Leadership Training: Train managers to recognize signs of burnout and distress and to have supportive, empathetic conversations with their teams. 

Building a More Inclusive Benefits Strategy

It’s important for employers and HR teams to understand that while looking for ways to support employees, it’s critical to focus on not lumping everyone into the same box. Because while some benefits might meet certain employee needs today, those needs can change over time and across different groups. Remember that building a truly inclusive benefits package is a journey, not a destination. Here’s how you can start. 

• Audit Your Benefits: Compare your offerings to employee preferences and identify gaps 
• Engage Employees: The best way to know what your employees need is to ask them. Use anonymous surveys to gather honest feedback on your current benefits and find out what’s missing. 
• Prioritize Communication: You may already have inclusive benefits that your employees don’t know about. Ensure employees are aware of the benefits available to them and how to access them. 
• Invest in Empathy: The data shows a substantial trickle-down effect of empathetic leaders in an organization. Encourage leadership to model empathy and support inclusive benefits initiatives.  
• Start Small: You don’t have to change everything overnight. Pick one area to focus on first, and then build from there.  

With 54% of employees at unempathetic organizations reporting they’re considering changing their job within the next 6 months, it might be a good time to ask if your healthcare benefits are truly inclusive and take a closer look at whether they reflect true empathy and support for all of your employees.  

Ultimately, inclusive benefits are about empathy. They show your employees that you see them, you value them, and you’re invested in their well-being. When your team feels supported in every aspect of their lives, they’ll be more engaged, more loyal, and more likely to thrive. 

Interested in learning more about empathy in the workplace? Check out our 2025 State of the Workplace Empathy Report here.