Positive leave experiences

A report from The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America® has found that how employees are supported during a period of leave corresponds to higher morale and loyalty when back in the workplace. According to the report, employees who report a good leave experience are two times as likely to say their employer cares about their well-being.

The new report, The Employee Leave Experience, examines employers' and employees' attitudes around the leave experience, including sick leave, vacation leave, mental health days, paid time off, bereavement leave, maternity leave, family care leave, paternity leave, paid family and medical leave (PFML), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), short-term disability insurance (STD), and long-term disability insurance (LTD).

When asked about their priorities for their absence management programs and supporting employees with non-maternity injuries or illnesses, 40% of employers say their top absence management priority is helping employees stay at work. Additionally, 36% say it's ensuring policies and procedures are compliant, 33% say it's creating a culture of care, empathy, and well-being, and 29% say it is supporting an employee in their return to safe and meaningful work.

In thinking ahead to how they can continue to help support a positive leave experience for employees, more than 80% of employers say they're considering moving toward a broad paid leave policy that addresses multiple leave reasons, rather than maintaining separate policies.

"Evolving worker expectations are driving organizations to reexamine their leave management practices in order to offer the best experience," said Jessica Vanscavish, Head of Disability, Absence, Life, and Supplemental Health at Guardian. "When processes are streamlined, communications are clear, and there is a single point of contact for questions, employees are more likely to feel supported before, during, and after a leave, directly translating into improved morale and loyalty."

Other takeaways from The Employee Leave Experience report include:

Trends in employee leave and absence-related claims:

• 81 percent of employers say mental health issues contribute to absences at their organization, with 50 percent seeing an increase in mental health claims and 30 percent seeing an increase in postpartum depression claims.
• While on leave, 39 percent of workers used mental health counseling benefits and 35 percent used physical therapy benefits. Fifteen percent also claimed benefits from their supplemental health insurance policies.

Critical influences on the employee leave experience:

• 50 percent of employers say having a supportive manager is the most influential factor impacting the employee leave experience. Fifty-six percent of employees said their manager's support made a positive difference in their leave experience.
• 30 percent of employers say the ability to make a single request for all applicable types of leave has the greatest positive impact on their employees' absence experience. Twenty-four percent of employers say ease of interacting online is most important.

Employer priorities for their absence management programs:

• 65 percent of employers are considering incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) into their absence management programs, with 19% having already incorporated AI into their disability and FMLA administration through benefit administration tools or partnerships.
• Nearly 8 in 10 employers rate the employee leave experience at their organization as "excellent" or "good," including submitting a request for disability/FMLA leave (79%), return to work (78%), communications across parties while on leave (77%), approval of disability/FMLA leave (76%), claims payment (76%), educating managers and supervisors (75%), and educating employees (74%).
• 52 percent of employers say their top reason for benefits integration is to increase employee access to benefits, followed by reducing HR workload (41%), improving program outcomes (36%), providing more comprehensive data (33%), and decreasing employee confusion (30%).

SOURCE: https://www.guardianlife.com/reports/the-employee-leave-experience.

From WCI's HR Answers Now ©2025 CCH Incorporated and its affiliates. All rights reserved.