The Benefits That You Should Be Offering Your Employees
The benefits that your company offers can be some of the most enticing reasons for people to apply to your job posts – but what if you aren’t sure where to start and what to offer? Which benefits are valued by employees? And which are required by law?
What is an employee benefit?
An employee benefit is pretty much what it says on the tin. It is a type of perk that comes from the employer that is non-wage related. Benefits and perks are often put into a job description to help attract the right talent – and it can also be some of the reasons that people stay with a company. Everything from employer medical benefits to wellness programs are in the benefits bag – so here are some to think about offering your employees.
What type of employee benefits are there?
There are three main employee benefits that you should know about:
- Employee benefits that are fringe benefits or a perk
- Employee benefits that are required by law
- Employee benefits that are considered industry standard but not required by law.
What benefits are required by law?
If you are just in the start-up phase, then it is a good idea to start looking into which benefits you will have to offer employees and which ones you can offer because you want to.
- Medicare and social security contributions are a benefit, regardless of how many employees consider them.
- Minimum wage and any overtime pay
- Workers’ compensation insurance
- Companies with more than 50 full-time employees must offer health insurance and family and medical leave.
- Unemployment compensation contributions
Which benefits are industry standard?
Industry-standard benefits are a cut above those that are required by law. Companies that are looking to create a workforce that is for the longevity of the company – and that does the best for its employees by ensuring that they offer all of the industry-standard benefits where applicable.
- Stock options are becoming a more popular benefit to offer employees, which means that employees can buy the stock at a reduced price – rather than be gifted it.
- PTO, when it comes to paid time off, even when it is a benefit many people don’t take advantage of, is a competitive point with many companies. Paid time off can cover paid vacation, company holidays, sick days, mental health days, and more.
- Life insurance is a huge benefit that many people with families will entice. Somewhere in the region, 85% of companies will offer some sort of life insurance options. Note: it is recommended that you have another form of life insurance, and this should be a supplemental option.
- Retirement cash like the 401(k)
- Employer-sponsored disability insurance is required by law in some states, while in others, it is just a nice to have benefit. Rhode Island, Hawaii, California, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and New York require some form of disability insurance provided by employees.
- Long-term disability insurance
- Short-term disability insurance
The more that these become industry standards, the more competitive the other types of benefits will become.
When deciding on the benefits that you want to offer, you need to consider the cost, the value, and if it will help you remain competitive.
What are the fringe benefits?
It is becoming more common for companies to talk about all of the fringe benefits that they offer to their employees. Fringe benefits are typically something like insurance or anything serious – they are usually things to enhance the lifestyle and culture of the company – and on occasion, something frivolous.
While there has been a recent revolt on the internet about how Friday afternoon beers and a pingpong table aren’t the same as paying a fair wage and reducing the stress on employees, fringe benefits are still quite attractive to many people.
So what do fringe benefits look like?
Remote
Hybrid working, flexible, or any way that the employee can choose to work from home when and if they need to. This is one of the most important benefits that has come out of the last few years. Since the pandemic, many large companies have seen the benefits of letting their employees stay at home when they need to. Remote working, hybrid working, and flexible working is also now something that many job-seekers are looking for. Never underestimate offering people to work how they work best.
11 Remote Work Quotes From Top Business Leaders | Hive
Unlimited PTO
Unlimited PTO is one of the biggest perks. It builds on the PTO from the industry standard and allows people to take time when they need it – no matter what they need it for. It is not surprising to know that this is one of the biggest and most sought-after perks – and one that most employees don’t abuse either. Employees are permitted to take as many holidays, sick, personal, or mental health days as they require, as long as their management permits their absence.
This employee benefit began as a trendy incentive for start-up employees and is fast being embraced by more established, larger organizations. While there are always dangers and benefits to providing a perk like unlimited PTO, many businesses consider it as an extra recruiting and retention tool.
Why We Decided to Offer Unlimited PTO | Velo IT Group
Commuting
Commuting can be a huge expense depending on when your company is located. Employers that can offer some tax-free commuter benefits might see an increase in serious applicants. Employees can acquire pre-tax commuting credits straight from their company under this scheme. This helps employees save money on travel expenditures like train tickets, ridesharing applications like Uber or Lyft, and work-related parking.
Relocation
Relocation and help finding housing is a benefit that is allowing people to take work across the wI world if they want to. Companies that offer relocation packages and support finding a home are clearly focused on securing the best talent, no matter how much that initially costs them.
There are some companies that classify themselves as being in a talent desert. When in a talent desert, they have no suitable candidates in the local area and need to look further afield. A variety of relocation and housing choices are available. The most prevalent manifestation of this approach is providing financial help to workers who wish to relocate. It may also entail collaborating with local housing organizations to assist out-of-state staff with apartment hunting.
Student loan repayment and tuition reimbursement
In America, there is a huge $1.59 trillion dollar student loan debt spread across 42.9 million Americans. Those figures are huge, and effectively it means that any one of your current – or will-be employees are carrying a lot of debt. Several firms provide tuition reimbursement and student debt payback schemes to alleviate the problem to their employees. These initiatives assist employees in reducing their financial load and encourage them to seek further degrees.
How does this help your business? Employees who are not financially strapped are less inclined to leave their employment for a higher-paying position. Furthermore, individuals that pursue extra education will learn more and provide value to their existing employment. An investment in the education and future of your staff is an investment in your company.
Wellness
Wellness programs can be light and fluffy – and some employees don’t feel like they get much from them. However, a well-formulated wellness program with a range of professions, activities, and support can mean that your employees are able to get the help they need at a time that suits them.
Wellness programs don’t need to be complicated – but it is better if they offer something more substantial to the employees. Employees spend more time working and in the work environment than anywhere else – which means if there was a place that was beneficial or convenient to offer wellness support – the work environment is it.
The biggest benefit for employers that implement a wellness program is that they see a noticeable reduction in the amount of PTO that an employee takes. Employee assistance programs, access to therapists and crisis counselors, mental health help, access to nutritionists, subsidized gym memberships, and other benefits are examples of corporate wellness initiatives.
The premise behind a corporate wellness program is that businesses engage in their workers’ well-being and wellness and get the benefits in the form of increased employee satisfaction and overall enhanced employee well-being.
There is no one size fits all option for the benefits you offer your employees. It might start simple with fresh fruit, water, and weekly chefs – and eventually, when you are in a position to do so, you might choose to pay off the outstanding student loan of your employees.
Almost all businesses will need to keep a tight financial ship in the early days so that they can comfortably compensate hard-working staff with the benefits that can improve their quality of life: 4 Ways to Save Time and Money in Your Business Today.
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