Manulife Financial : Majority of millennial business owners invest in employees benefits

Manulife Survey finds within a year of opening, almost 81 per cent invest in health and wealth benefits

Waterloo - The 2016 Manulife Small Business Research Report found that nearly half (45 per cent) of the businesses run by millennials offer wellness programs as part of their group benefits offering, while just 22 per cent of small business companies run by baby boomers offer group wellness programs. The same phenomenon is observed with group pension plans, 44 per cent of millennial business owners have set up a group pension plan for their employees compared to 20 per cent of baby boomer owners.

'Our research shows a connection between the investment in the health and wealth of employees and their level of engagement and productivity,' said Donna Carbell, Senior Vice President, Group Benefits, Manulife. 'Millennials understand what attracts and retains millennials and they are definitely going to scoop up the best talent by implementing benefits programs as soon as possible.'

'Millennials tend to have a stronger appetite for wellness programs as part of their benefits and companies are moving in that direction,' added Carbell. 'They are likely finding more value in that kind of benefits plans than other work incentives.'

Millennial owners account for one quarter of small business owners in Canada according to Manulife's research, and these business leaders are not shy about getting advice on how to run their business.

Working with professionals from the beginning
While 60 per cent of all small business owners said they have worked with a business advisor, nearly 70 per cent of millennial business owners who have worked with an advisor said they hired the advisor before or at the startup of their business compared to 46 per cent for baby boomers. In addition, 34 per cent of millennial business owners said they hired an HR professional before they started their business while only 10 per cent of baby boomers hired within the first six months of operation.

More than 50 per cent of millennial business owners said that they find payroll services (vs. 35 per cent for Baby boomers), HR support (vs. 14 per cent for Baby boomers) and cash flow and debt management services (vs. 24 per cent for Baby boomers) to be valuable compared to older business owners.

'These findings clearly contradict the popular notion that millennials only tend to rely on the Internet or apps rather than seek advice,' added Carbell. 'The savvy HR Professional or business advisor will understand that millennial entrepreneurs have a different approach to running and growing their business.'

About the Manulife Small Business Research Report
Now in its sixth year, the Manulife Financial Small Business Research Report helps advisors better understand of the challenges facing entrepreneurs, professionals and small business owners. The research is based on the results of an online survey of 1,010 Canadian small business owners across industry sectors and regions. Millennials accounted for 25 per cent of the surveyed owners, Generation X 33 per cent and Baby boomers 33 per cent. Environics Research Group and Rogers Publishing Ltd conducted the research on Manulife's behalf. The full 2016 report is available here.

About Manulife's Surveys
As a leading international financial services company, Manulife surveys consumers around the world to better understand what is important to our customers. For the past 16 years, the Manulife Investor Sentiment Index has been conducted in Canada and across Asia, gathering views on a range of asset classes, savings and investments. The Manulife Bank Debt Survey is a semi-annual overview of debt and savings priorities of Canadian homeowners. The annual Manulife Small Business Research Report helps advisors meet customers' needs by better understanding the challenges facing entrepreneurs, professionals and small business owners. Manulife's Financial Wellness Study established a benchmark in 2015 to measure the financial wellness, overall health, and productivity of employees of our Institutional customers.

About Manulife
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services group providing forward-thinking solutions to help people with their big financial decisions. We operate as John Hancock in the United States, and Manulife elsewhere. We provide financial advice, insurance and wealth and asset management solutions for individuals, groups and institutions. At the end of 2015, we had approximately 34,000 employees, 63,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving 20 million customers. At the end of June 2016, we had $934 billion (US$718 billion) in assets under management and administration, and in the previous 12 months we made more than $25.4 billion in benefits, interest and other payments to our customers. Our principal operations are in Asia, Canada and the United States where we have served customers for more than 100 years. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges and under '945' in Hong Kong. Follow Manulife on Twitter @ManulifeNews or visit www.manulife.com or www.johnhancock.com.

Media Contact:
Anne-Julie Gratton
Manulife
514-499-7999, ext. 308150
Anne-Julie_Gratton@manulife.com