Understanding how organisations view End of Service Benefits in the Middle East
A strategic survey on End of Service Benefits (ESBs) in the Middle East was recently conducted by Willis Towers Watson in partnership with Equiom.
The project involved 330 organisations in the Middle East being surveyed with the aim of understanding how they fund their statutory and enhanced ESB liabilities, structure their enhanced ESBs and make use of savings vehicles such as long-term savings or retirement plans to provide benefits over and above statutory ESB requirements.
Some key findings of the report include:
- Two in five respondents indicated that they provide an enhancement to the minimum benefits for employees in the countries in which they operate
- The most common reason given for providing an enhancement was contractual requirement (41%), followed by consistency between countries (39%) and retention of key talent (33%)
- Of the organisations that provide ESBs, none made any changes to their end of service benefits as a result of Covid-19 during 2020
- Three in five organisations continue to account for ESBs in their local books, with only 19% using international accounting standards and 5% do not account for the liability at all
- Only 24% of respondents indicated that they offer a retirement or long-term savings plan to their employees
The findings of the ESB survey demonstrate there is still work to be done in changing the shape of retirement benefits in the Middle East. Equiom supports those forward-thinking organisations looking to do so. We provide a tailored solution designed around the employers’ specific requirements, with the aim of providing security and control with enhanced and flexible employee benefits.
To read the full report and see all the findings from those surveyed, please click here.
For further information on how Workplace Savings Plans could work for your organisation, please contact Chris Cain.
