The percentage of ‘global nomads’ (employees who move from country to country on multiple assignments) and long-term expatriates has increased in recent years. This has caused challenges for employers when it comes to providing expatriate benefits. Multinational companies do however continue to view provision of expatriate benefits as a priority. Mercer’s 2011/2012 Benefits Survey for Expatriates and Internationally Mobile Employees of 119,000 expatriates found that 85% have specific procedures in place to monitor the success of expatriate benefit programmes. Employers are eager to ensure that their expat benefits programmes not only support business and HR strategies but also meet their assignees’ needs.
The need to develop global leadership talent and the growth of new business ventures abroad has prompted a rise in global mobility. The number of global nomads has risen from 6% to 10% of the expatriate population of survey respondents, while the percentage of short-term expatriates has fallen from 17% to 11%. Long-term expatriates as a percentage of the total assignee population increased from 21% to 40% between the 2008/09 and 2011/12 surveys.
Phil Stanley, Mercer’s Asia Pacific Global Mobility COE Leader for Information Product Solutions, said: “Seasoned professionals who can bring solid international experience and a depth of knowledge across a number of operating environments are vital to companies looking to create or expand new ventures abroad. Multinationals are expecting their talent pool to have varied geographical experience as a prerequisite to climbing the top rungs of the career ladder.”
Retirement policies
The most common retirement approach for all internationally mobile employees is to maintain cover in home country plans, based on the assumption that assignees are more likely to retire in their home countries. 63% of traditional and long-term expatriates are maintained in their home country retirement plans. One solution is to establish an international retirement plan, providing a single solution across assignments and the potential for a common scheme design. The survey results show that only 12% of companies have established international retirement plans to ensure continuity of benefits.
Medical benefits
Nearly all respondents currently provide private medical insurance for their globally mobile workforce (98%) compared to only 57% in 2005. Medical benefits and the quality and standards of medical healthcare vary significantly from country to country, so the main challenge for companies is to provide expatriates with an equitable system of healthcare whilst managing costs.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
