The scheme helps the employer to project a positive and sustainable image while also providing staff with a viable, healthy alternative to driving. As their range grows thanks to powerful electric motors, bikes are becoming an ever more attractive transport option.
For Neudoerfler, a leading office furniture manufacturer in Austria, sustainability is a priority. At the company’s headquarters in Neudörfl in the Burgenland region, furniture is manufactured by means of energy-efficient processes that deliver ‘quality made in Austria’. The timber used for production is obtained from sustainable forestry and the finished products are wrapped in reusable blankets for delivery in order to keep single-use packaging to a minimum. Almost 300 employees in production, administration, and sales are working hard every day to push the company to new heights. As an employer, Neudoerfler wants to reward this commitment with additional benefits. “By enabling our employees to obtain a bike they love, we want to promote an active and healthy lifestyle,” says Silvia Graf, HR Generalist for Recruitment and Employee Development at Neudoerfler. “A workplace bike scheme speaks to current needs and also chimes with our sustainability strategy.”
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A leasing and service model that requires minimum effort
In order to keep the additional administrative effort for companies to a minimum, CHG-MERIDIAN and its business partner velocitee have developed a leasing model for Neudoerfler that offers maximum flexibility to the employer and a green incentive to users. “The Austrian statutory framework for salary sacrifice benefits differs from the German one,” explains Daniela Cicmilovic, Account Manager at CHG-MERIDIAN Austria. “Within the three-party set-up, we are able to minimize the administrative effort involved in organizing the leasing of workplace bikes and transferring them to employees.”
Neudoerfler has concluded a standard lease agreement with CHG-MERIDIAN and set a price range for the bicycles and e-bikes offered under the scheme. Employees can visit velocitee’s online portal and select their preferred bike. Through CHG-MERIDIAN, the employer then leases the bike for a period of 48 months and makes it available to the employee for them to use – for commuting as well as for non-work-related travel. “In velocitee, we have found a partner who shares our understanding of quality and service in every respect,” says Daniela Cicmilovic. For example, roadshow events were held at Neudoerfler’s sites in Austria in order to give employees the opportunity to test-ride bikes and e-bikes before signing up for the scheme, allowing them to make an informed choice.
Boosting staff loyalty and employer branding
Leasing contracts for bicycles and e-bikes are not (yet) part of CHG-MERDIAN’s core business, but nor are they a rarity. Demand for this offering is growing and it aligns well with the company’s philosophy of supporting its customers above and beyond their financial and technological needs. “In times of a pronounced shortage of skilled workers, incentive schemes like this are not just a great way to strengthen staff loyalty but also an asset for recruitment,” emphasizes Daniela Cicmilovic. A big draw of the workplace bike scheme is that it can be offered to any and all employees, irrespective of where they work, what their job is, or how old they are. This enabled Neudoerfler to subsidize work-related travel for all employees equitably.
“Thanks to CHG, we are able to offer our employees an environmentally friendly incentive. This is a real gain for us, especially in light of the fact that employers’ sustainability-related activities are becoming ever more important to both existing and prospective employees!”
