We’re pleased to announce that we have released our 2024 report which analyses the factors impacting employee health and looks at how multinationals can ensure their wellness plans deliver the best outcomes for both their employees and their organisation.

The report looks specifically at industry, culture and gender as three factors impacting health and uses our global data, drawn from standardised, anonymised data from millions of claimants around the world, to draw key conclusions.¹

Download the report

One key link found in the report is how industry affects musculoskeletal (MSK) claims. It explores the link between the type of job someone performs, sedentary or active, and discusses how that might impact the likelihood of them making a claim for an MSK condition.

MSKs are a particular issue for multinational employers. Our report finds that in 12 of the 13 industries covered by our data, MSK claims were the top cost driver, with spending on MSK care nearly tripling from US$26 million to $95 million between 2018 and 2022.

Our report also looks in-depth at how industry, culture and gender impact a variety of different health claims. One area of particular focus is on mental health. The report states that all three of these factors have the potential to impact mental health claims, yet only a tiny proportion of all paid claims (1.6%) in our data are for mental health conditions. This is in spite of the fact that 22.9% of claims incidence in the retail industry alone were for mental health.

Another industry particularly impacted by a specific health condition is the hospitality (food & beverage) industry, where 71.2% of metabolic health paid claims were found.

As well as the focus on these health issues, our report looks at how gender plays a role in the types of conditions employees face. Our data shows women’s inflammation claims costs outpacing men’s (57.6% for women compared to 42.4% for men in 2022). The report also examines a variety of health issues that predominantly affect women, including lupus and ‘the missed disease’, endometriosis.

What does this mean for multinational employers?

As multinational employers, we encourage you to take the trends outlined in this report and use them as a starting point to dig deeper into the make-up of your own workforce. At MAXIS, we believe that multinationals can better address employee health concerns if they fully understand and consider the needs of all of their employees, and offer a tailored approach to health and wellness benefits that incorporates factors such as industry, culture and gender.

If employers step away from the ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach that has been traditionally adopted to achieve equality when forming wellness plans, they can really address the differing needs and health concerns of their people, with better outcomes for everyone.

Dr Leena Johns, Chief Health & Wellness Officer, MAXIS GBN, said: “Increasingly, I'm tasked with guiding multinationals who want to know how to persuade their board of directors on both the merits of wellness and sustaining their investment in it. And I completely understand this predicament. HR executives championing wellness initiatives find themselves navigating a complex landscape, where every expenditure is put under the microscope, against the backdrop of escalating healthcare costs and broader economic inflation. Multinationals are right to want to see a return on their investment in wellness programmes.

“Our treasure trove of claims data, drawn from standardised, anonymised data from millions of claimants around the world, gives us rich insights into the truly diverse landscape of employees’ health and wellness needs. This report draws on those insights to show employers how to look at their people’s healthcare needs through the lens of industry, culture and gender, and help them understand why a one-size-fits-all approach could be letting them down.

“As the saying goes, ‘health is wealth’, so when employees can convert their sense of wellbeing into productivity, they can be rewarded with job satisfaction and optimism for the future. And when employers invest in their people, they can be rewarded with better organisational resilience, eased pressure on healthcare costs and the ability to attract and retain talent, ultimately improving the bottom line.”

The full report can be downloaded here

¹ MAXIS GBN collected anonymised medical claims data from 48 local insurers in 37 markets across Asia, Middle East, Africa, Europe and the Americas. It standardised and analysed this data to give a picture of the private medical claims experience of its multinational clients. For the purposes of this whitepaper, MAXIS GBN has segmented its data and considered it by industry, culture, gender and other metrics to illustrate the important role these play in driving the health challenges of employees globally.

For media enquiries please contact

Kate Ross / Nick Spearing

MAXIS Global Benefits Network – [email protected]  

This document has been prepared by MAXIS GBN and is for informational purposes only – it does not constitute advice.  MAXIS GBN has made every effort to ensure that the information contained in this document has been obtained from reliable sources, but cannot guarantee accuracy or completeness.  The information contained in this document may be subject to change at any time without notice.  Any reliance you place on this information is therefore strictly at your own risk.

About MAXIS GBN

MAXIS Global Benefits Network (MAXIS GBN), co-founded by MetLife and AXA in 1998 is one of the leading international employee benefits networks providing global service capabilities and delivering world-class employee benefits perspectives and solutions to clients in over 120 markets around the world. In February 2016, MetLife and AXA further strengthened their relationship by combining all of its MAXIS GBN existing operations under a joint venture company. This transformation helps leverage the existing strength of the network and its two parent companies while further enhancing the client experience, focusing on product innovation and providing data analytics. For more information, please visit www.maxis-gbn.com

The MAXIS Global Benefits Network (“Network”) is a network of locally licensed MAXIS member insurance companies (“Members”) founded by AXA France Vie, Paris, France (“AXA”) and Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, New York, NY (“MLIC”). MAXIS GBN, a Private Limited Company with a share capital of €4,650,000, registered with ORIAS under number 16000513, and with its registered office at 313, Terrasses de l’Arche – 92727 Nanterre Cedex, France, is an insurance and reinsurance intermediary that promotes the Network. MAXIS GBN is jointly owned by affiliates of AXA and MLIC and does not issue policies or provide insurance; such activities are carried out by the Members. MAXIS GBN operates in the UK through its UK establishment with its registered address at 1st Floor, The Monument Building, 11 Monument Street, London EC3R 8AF, Establishment Number BR018216 and in other European countries on a services basis. MAXIS GBN operates in the U.S. through MAXIS Insurance Brokerage Services, Inc., with its registered office located at c/o Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, 50 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY, 10020-1605, a NY licensed insurance broker. MLIC is the only Member licensed to transact insurance business in NY. The other Members are not licensed or authorised to do business in NY and the policies and contracts they issue have not been approved by the NY Superintendent of Financial Services, are not protected by the NY state guaranty fund, and are not subject to all of the laws of NY.