Language barriers are undermining employees’ access to workplace benefits, reducing enrolment and engagement and increasing the risk of errors and misunderstandings, says Parbudyal Singh, professor of human resource management at York University.

“In many cases, employees will default to not enrolling or underutilizing benefits because they’re unsure how they work or whether they apply to them.”

Employees may also be less likely to engage with benefits communications if they aren’t confident they fully understand the information being presented, he adds.

Read: Language, communication shaping DC plan members’ retirement decisions: survey

According to Singh, language accessibility is closely tied to workplace outcomes such as engagement, benefits utilization and perceptions of psychological safety and loyalty, which are linked to retention........

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