Why employees don't experience the value of your benefits

Companies spend significant money on benefits that employees barely notice or don't find valuable enough. Does that sound familiar? You're not alone. Yet another report shows a persistent gap in how employees perceive the value of today's benefit packages.

The benefits landscape in Sweden hasn't evolved much over the past decades. Wages and benefits have largely been shaped by collective bargaining agreements.

New benefits have entered the market, but new tax rules continuously put a stop to benefits that were historically highly valued, such as company cars, or both laser eye surgery and IVF treatments through gross salary deductions.

It's true that these adjustments make it harder for employers to offer a broad portfolio of tax-advantaged benefits, but that doesn't mean you lose all flexibility.

With 5 generations now in the workforce, more than ever before at the same time, the younger generation both wants and demands a more tailored benefits package. We see it in study after study, most recently in the Propel 2025 report, released in June 2025.

Employers think they're delivering. Employees disagree.

The Propel 2025 Report shows a clear gap in how employers and employees perceive the value of both benefits and the overall employee experience.

Employees often feel uncertain, confused, or indifferent about benefits. Despite good intentions and increased investment, it's common that:

• Benefits are presented in a disjointed and technical way.
• It's too complicated to understand what you actually get.
• They lack personalization. Everyone gets the same, regardless of life situation.
• Communication around benefits is one-off rather than ongoing.

How can employers improve their benefits offering?

1. Create clear, value-based communication

Avoid being vague when communicating about benefits. Show the value with concrete examples. For example:

Your occupational pension equals 12% of your salary. That's like getting an extra month's pay every year, invested in your future.

2. Bring everything together in one place

Create a digital benefits portal where employees can see everything on offer, in real time. A platform like CLVR Benefits makes it possible to visualize the entire Total Compensation package, including pension, insurance, and other benefits.

3. Personalize by life situation

More time off? Fertility support? Extra pension savings? An employee in their 30s with young children values different benefits than a recent graduate. The same envelope rarely fits both.

4. Show the actual value

Few employees know what their benefits are worth beyond their salary. Don't forget to include any employer social contributions. The number is usually bigger than they think.

5. Educate and remind year-round

When, where, and how do you want to communicate about your benefits? Planning your communication across the year, with different focus areas, helps employees stay reminded of the offering. Together with CLVR, you can build a communication plan tailored specifically to your company.

How CLVR Benefits helps

At CLVR we help companies visualize, communicate, and personalize their benefits in a platform that makes the full value clear. The result: