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Free report: The benefits employees really want

Employee benefits report 2026: back every reward decision with evidence

UK employees value paid sick leave more than a pay rise. Only 56% of employers offer it to all staff. That’s one finding from our research with 2,000 UK employees and 300 UK HR decision-makers. Get the full report, free, and see where your package hits the mark and where it falls short.

  • 68% of employees rate paid sick leave as important to them
  • A 22-point gap on pay: 60% want inflation-matching rises, 38% of employers provide them
  • Pay doesn’t make the top five reasons people feel happy at work. Colleagues, visible results and recognition do

Reward budgets are tighter. Expectations aren’t.

Employer National Insurance (NI) costs more than it did. Wage bills are under pressure. Finance wants a reason for every pound of reward spend.

Your people, meanwhile, know exactly what they want. The risk sits in the space between the two: money spent on benefits nobody values, and gaps that send good people elsewhere.

This report gives you the evidence to close that space, so your next benefits decision rests on data, not assumptions.

The benefits employees really want, and how to close the gap

What’s in the employee benefits report 

  • The ranking. The benefits UK employees value most, and how priorities differ for women and men

  • The gaps. Where employee demand runs furthest ahead of employer provision, and which gaps to close first

  • Life stage. Why priorities shift with age, and why 35 to 44-year-olds rate flexible hours as highly as sick pay

  • Beyond benefits. What makes people happy at work, and why that matters for retention

  • A five-step action plan. Practical moves to put your spend where it does the most good

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1st

Paid sick leave tops the list of benefits UK employees value, ahead of inflation-matching pay rises.

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22 points

The gap between employees who want inflation-matching pay rises (60%) and employers who provide them (38%).

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72%

of employees who feel happy at work on 20 or more days a month find their job fulfilling most of the time.

“There’s a real risk in employers cutting back on benefits or standing still. Employees have clear priorities, and in several areas there are significant gaps between what they expect and what employers currently provide.” 

Karen Lough

Director of people, Ciphr

Turn the findings into a sharper employee benefits strategy

The report’s action plan comes down to three moves:

  1. Listen to your people

  2. Give them choice

  3. Make sure they know what’s on offer

That last one is easy to miss. A benefit nobody knows about is spend with no return.

Ciphr benefits connects to Ciphr HR. A salary change or a move to a new department reaches the benefits platform within about a minute, so reward data stays accurate without a second round of admin. Built-in communication tools put the right message in front of the right people, so the benefits you already pay for get used.

About the research

Ciphr commissioned two surveys, both run by OnePoll. The first asked 2,000 UK employees about 48 different benefits, rewards and incentives in February 2026. The second asked 300 UK HR decision-makers which of those benefits they offer to all staff, in 2025.

This is HR amplified

See what your people value most

Download the employee benefits report and find out where your package already wins, and where the gaps cost you talent.

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