Employers are increasingly broadening their scope of employee benefits offerings to meet the changing demands of their workforce, according to research conducted by WorldatWork with underwriting support from Korn Ferry International Inc. (NYSE: KFY).

The survey of more than 1,000 organizations found elder-care resource and referral services, women advancement initiatives and disaster relief funds are among the benefits that had statistically significant increases from 2017 to 2018. Telemedicine offerings, identity theft insurance, unpaid sabbaticals and paid parental leave also saw increased participation in 2018.

Those offering telemedicine services benefits increased to 81% in 2018, up from 73% in 2017; elder-care resource and referral services increased to 67% from 62%; paid paternal leave to 52% from 47%; and women’s advancement initiatives to 36% from 29%.

“The prevalence of many of these nontraditional benefits shows an acknowledgement on the part of employers that employees have concerns and responsibilities outside of their jobs,” Korn Ferry Senior Principal Malinda Riley said. “These benefits help address those issues, which increases employee loyalty and productivity. We are also impressed with the increase in women’s advancement initiatives, which will contribute to stronger, more balanced leadership teams.” 

The study also found that some benefits that have increasingly been in the headlines are not being adopted quickly by organizations. Only 9% of respondents say they offer an unlimited paid time off program, and only 6% of the respondents say they offer college debt repayment programs.