A new survey has revealed that income during sickness absence is the most valued health-related employee benefit among staff and is more important than health insurance.

According to the study, 88% of workers think sick pay is desirable or highly desirable. This is followed by critical illness insurance (68%), private medical insurance (66%) and dental insurance (64%).

The survey found however that employees found healthy eating to be an important factor with 59% stating healthy eating was desirable.

More than a third of women (39%) find weight loss support desirable or highly desirable compared with 29% of men.

Alex Bennett, head of healthcare at a consulting firm stated: “At a time when workers are worried about their financial futures, it is no surprise that, rather than concentrating on staying healthy, they focus on how they are going to manage in the event they do become sick.

"It is encouraging to see British workers value the financial support and healthcare benefits provided at a time of illness. However, if employers are to continue to fund such benefits then they must do more to both improve and capture the return on investment, including benchmarking and board-level commitment. This should be coupled with promoting wellness to improve productivity."