The percentage of companies that believe dental benefits improve employee morale has risen from 51% in 2008 to 67% in 2010. Similarly, the fact that employees might not be able to afford to maintain their oral health is increasingly a concern to companies, as this has risen from 41% in 2008 to 49% in 2010. Finally, the number of companies that believe dental benefits help to reduce sickness absence has risen from 30% in 2008 to 66% in 2010.

With this in mind, and given that dental care appears to be more important to employees and employer alike, are companies becoming more flexible when allowing dental visits during work time. The answer is a resounding no, and in fact, companies are becoming a lot stricter monitoring this.
One in ten of companies now discourage any visits to the dentist during working hours compared to 4% last year. Only 37% of companies believe it is up to the individual when they choose to visit the dentist compared to 53% last year. This could be a reflection of the increasing pressure on workplaces to keep people at work during these difficult financial times, and a further indication of the need for benefits such as dental to enable employees the option of visiting private dentists during out of office hours.

This research was conducted by Opinion Matters using an online fieldwork methodology. Opinion Matters surveyed 250 HR Managers and 1,005 working adults between 24 February and 4 March 2010. Respondents were invited to participate from a nationally representative online access panel. All research carried out adhered to the latest Market Research Society Codes of Conduct and is fully compliant with the Data Protection Act 1998, ensuring respondent anonymity.

Source: Simply Health