Is Your Company Offering the Benefits Employees Really Want?

Employees who feel taken care of and appreciated are much more likely to give their best effort to the job and remain loyal to their employer.

401(k)

People feel more uncertain about their financial futures than ever in these unsteady times, especially when it comes to financing their retirement. Offering 401(k) retirement savings provides employees with a tax-deferred way to save for retirement without missing the small amount deducted from their paychecks. Deferring a portion of each paycheck towards retirement savings also lowers taxable wages since plan participants pay no taxes until they begin taking withdrawals.

Many employers opt to match employee deduction amounts to help give their retirement savings an extra boost. However, that may not be feasible for your organization. If not, consider offering a set percentage as a 401(k) contribution for employees who take advantage of this opportunity. For example, an employee who sets aside five percent of each paycheck would not turn down a three percent contribution by the employer even though it’s not a full match.

Health, Dental, and Vision Coverage

Health insurance is the largest expense for most employers that offer employee benefits. The cost has risen so much in the last several years that employers often have no choice but to pass along some of the expense to their employees.

Even so, offering the most generous medical coverage possible, which also includes dental coverage and vision coverage, sends a strong message to employees that the employer cares about their well-being. They will spend less time feeling stressed about paying the premiums, which allows them to focus on their work and be more productive.

Voluntary Benefits

Voluntary benefits (VBs) are any perks provided by an employer that employees may choose to participate in or decline.    In most cases, VBs are paid by the employee via payroll deduction and may be included in a pretax Section 125 plan.   Thus, the employer can offer as many Voluntary benefits as they like without concern that they may increase the cost of employee insurance.  Common types of VBs help cover gaps in employer-sponsored health plans.  Other VBs are specialty medical coverage and life insurance.  

VBs are also valuable to businesses looking to recruit and maintain high-quality employees.  The better the benefit package a prospective employee sees, the more likely they are to accept an offer.    

Flexible Work Arrangements

Both employers and employees have come to appreciate and respect the benefits of creating schedules that allow the former to maintain a greater balance with their life outside of work. Although many employers felt skeptical at first, most now realize that it doesn’t matter when an employee finishes their work as long as it’s on time.

Here are some popular work arrangements that could benefit your organization:

• Compressed work week, such as four 10-hour days
• Flex time, which allows employees to set their start and end times
• Job sharing
• Leave of absence other than those protected by FMLA
• Part-time hours

Employees should understand that flexible work arrangements are a privilege and not a right. Communicating your expectations clearly from the beginning should help to prevent people from abusing the arrangement.

Disability Insurance

Life-changing accidents can happen within seconds and leave people feeling anxious about providing for themselves and their families. Short-term and long-term disability insurance alleviates that fear because employees know they will continue to receive at least some of their income. Having that stressor eliminated can even help them recover from their illness or injury faster than they would have otherwise.

Typically, employees who are too sick or injured to work must use the short-term disability available to them before they can convert to long-term disability. The number of weeks employees can receive both types of disability insurance varies by employer. Thirteen to 26 weeks is common for short-term disability, while employees may be able to collect long-term disability benefits for a year or longer.

Holiday Pay and Paid Time Off (PTO)

Every employee has a life outside of work, and offering holiday pay and PTO recognizes that. Employers typically offer paid time off for major holidays and PTO to allow employees to attend to personal matters. Holiday pay is usually not dependent on seniority, while the number of PTO hours granted depends on how long each employee has been with the company.

Other Miscellaneous Employee Benefits

The employee benefits described above are standard for most businesses, but employers can offer additional perks at their discretion. Some common examples include tuition assistance, employee wellness programs, and life insurance. The best way to understand what employees want and will pay for if necessary is to ask them directly. Exact Payroll is also available to help employers assess which benefits to offer.

Contact Us for Additional Help

Employee benefits are just one of our areas of expertise here at Exact Payroll. We invite you to learn more about each type of benefit available and how to offer them to your employees by contacting us today.