How 3 Australian companies support employees through cost-of-living pressures

Across Australia, employees are feeling the squeeze of higher grocery bills, fuel costs and everyday essentials. While HR can’t control these external costs and budget pressures, many teams are finding practical ways to offer relief without relying solely on pay rises.

Three organisations, Knight Frank, INPEX and Covalent Lithium, show what’s possible when recognition, communication, and meaningful discounts come together in one place. Their approaches prove that making support simple, visible, and part of daily life can translate into real household savings and a stronger culture for their people.

Knight Frank: Turning a refreshed EVP into everyday savings and connection

When Kristin Hay joined Knight Frank Australia as Partner and Chief People Officer, she found a business ready for change but held back by outdated systems, a dispersed workforce, and a lack of clarity about what employees could expect in return for their effort. The company needed to modernise its employee experience and bring a clear Employee Value Proposition (EVP) to life in a tangible way.

Partnering with Reward Gateway | Edenred, Knight Frank launched a single destination for recognition, rewards, and benefits. Kristin describes it as a “one-stop shop” where employees can recognise peers and managers can deliver awards tied to values, service awards, and project rewards all through one platform. A live recognition feed means wins are seen across offices and sites, helping a geographically spread workforce feel like one team.

The financial relief element is just as important as the cultural lift. Employees can access discounts on essentials, travel, and fuel directly through the platform, a practical support during escalating cost-of-living pressures.

Kristin says savings stories spread quickly through the organisation and encourage others to make the most of these discounts.

“One of my team booked their honeymoon through the platform and saved over $700. Stories like that spread quickly and help people see the real value in what we’re offering,”

Adoption didn’t happen by accident. The HR team treated it like a campaign, blending data and storytelling to build momentum. Usage nudges kept recognition top of mind, leaders received transparent reporting at state and national level, and the business shared real stories of discount savings and appreciation to reinforce the impact. They also identified champions, like the employee known for sending recognition every single day, whose behaviour measurably lifted team engagement. When usage dipped in a particular area, leaders were invited into a conversation about why, with the message that the platform was too important to let sit idle.

The results speak to both engagement and financial impact. Ninety‑five percent of employees are active on the platform. More than $500,000 has been spent through it, with over $120,000 in reward benefits sent. Most importantly, people understand what Knight Frank offers and how to make it work for them, whether that’s being seen for their contributions or saving on weekly expenses.

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INPEX: One hub for recognition, discounts, and wellbeing at scale

INPEX, one of Australia’s leading energy companies, faced a different version of the same challenge. Its 1,600‑strong workforce is spread across remote sites and varied rosters, making it harder to keep recognition and communication consistent. Rising living costs were adding extra pressure, and leaders wanted a solution that could meet multiple needs in one place.
The company launched Hōshū Hub with Reward Gateway | Edenred; a single platform for recognition, employee discounts, wellbeing resources, and internal communications. The simplicity of one hub has reduced friction for employees and removed duplicated manual processes for HR. With 98% of employees registered and using the hub, it has become part of the rhythm of working at INPEX, something people check for updates, use to celebrate each other, and rely on for everyday savings.

Recognition has moved from sporadic to systemic. Over the past year, employees have sent more than 230 eCards and received upwards of 1,500 awards, with over $270,000 flowing through their reward marketplace. That activity reflects genuine appreciation rather than a top‑down mandate; employees report feeling seen by peers and leaders, and morale has lifted as recognition moments are shared across departments and sites.

The cost-of-living impact is clear. In just 12 months, employees collectively saved more than $166,000 through the platform, a 20% increase from the year prior. As one INPEX leader put it: 

“Providing access to employee discounts and financial wellbeing tools helps us show support for our employees beyond their salary. It enables them to make savings on everyday purchases, which can make a real difference during challenging financial times. It also demonstrates that we are invested in their overall wellbeing, not just their work life.”

By combining financial relief with a culture of appreciation, INPEX has created a hub employees trust and return to, something leaders reinforce by modelling use in meetings, in onboarding, and in regular communications.

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Covalent Lithium: Accessible recognition and essential savings for a growing, dispersed workforce

Covalent Lithium is building an end-to-end lithium production capability in Australia, which has required rapid growth over the last few years. With around 600 employees split between a mine site, a refinery, and corporate and administrative offices, the organisation needed a consistent approach to recognition and benefits that worked as well for FIFO crews as it did for office-based staff.

The company implemented Reward Gateway | Edenred with the LiFT platform to centralise recognition and savings. Accessibility was a non‑negotiable; LiFT runs on both mobile and desktop, so employees can “just click and post,” whether they’re at a desk or on site. That simplicity has encouraged frequent shout‑outs and made recognition visible across the whole business.

For households, the everyday savings have been crucial. In the past year alone, employees saved roughly $30,000 through the platform, with grocery discounts delivering 4-5% off at major supermarkets. As Laboratory Superintendent, David Hutchings puts it: 

"I do use all of the discount codes. I'm probably one of the biggest users of that! One of the simplest ways to save money is to buy your groceries. A 4% savings at Coles or Woolworths adds up over time. How do you give yourself a 4% pay rise? That's what you're doing, and it's easy to do. It's not like you're working lots and lots of extra hours to get that money." 

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What HR can take from these three approaches

Although these organisations operate in different sectors, their strategies share common threads. Each put recognition, communication, and financial relief in one accessible place. Each made it simple to participate daily, whether through a mobile app on a mine site or a branded hub in a corporate office. Each told real stories of savings and appreciation to build belief that the platform was worth people’s time. And each treated adoption as an ongoing practice, not a launch event; leaders modelled the behaviour, HR tracked usage transparently, and teams iterated based on feedback.

Crucially, all three tied support to outcomes employees could feel at home. Discounts on groceries, fuel, and travel add up to meaningful savings that can make a real difference to people. Recognition that is public and values‑linked gives people a sense of progress and pride. Together, these elements help counter the two most corrosive effects of cost‑of‑living pressures at work: financial strain and the feeling of not being valued.

If you’re looking to replicate their success, start by choosing a single, easy‑to‑use destination for recognition and discounts. Make leaders the first adopters and storytellers. Translate benefits into dollars-and-cents examples employees can relate to. Then keep listening and refining, share usage data with leaders, showcase real savings, and keep asking employees what would help most right now. The mix that works for your workforce might be as simple as consistent shout‑outs and five per cent off the weekly shop. Done consistently, it can feel like a pay rise, strengthen culture, and help your people weather a tough economic cycle with their employer firmly in their corner.

Want to learn more about offering cost-of-living relief to your people and boosting their financial wellbeing? Access our Cost of Living content hub for a range of free, helpful resources. 

To learn more about our Employee Engagement Platform and how it can support your people during times of uncertainty and change, schedule a free consultation with one of our experts.