Smaller firms are being urged to take up private health insurance to cut absenteeism and boost staff satisfaction.
To encourage this The Forum of Private Business has teamed up with provider WPA to offer specially-discounted private medical insurance (PMI) to its members.
The Forum believes small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) could save time and money by investing in a medical insurance scheme.
It argued that providing additional healthcare cover for staff is likely to save companies a significant amount of money by ensuring employees return to work as swiftly as possible after an illness or injury.
And, it said, the move is likely to make the recruitment of desirable employees quicker, cheaper and easier thanks to the addition of a valuable benefit for workers.
The Forum also suggested that providing private healthcare cover for staff will lead to increased employee loyalty and satisfaction, leading to lower staff turnover - and therefore lower recruitment costs.
Nick Palin, finance and administration director at The Forum, commented: "Employees often represent a business's greatest investment, so it makes sense for business owners to optimise this investment by reducing sickness absence and increasing staff retention.
"However, it's not just employers who should consider investing in private medical insurance. Owner-managers themselves are obviously crucial to the day-to-day operation of their enterprises, so they too need to be able to return to work as quickly as possible after an illness or injury."
Palin added that he hoped adding private healthcare would enable smaller businesses to compete with their bigger rivals.
