Benefits and Employee Retention

Is your company an exceptional employer? It used to be that the benefit of working for a company was a paycheck. Only exceptional companies offered health and life insurance benefits. Now employees expect such benefits. Therefore, to be considered exceptional, today's companies have to offer even more extensive benefit packages.
Companies that have generous and flexible benefit programs have lower turnover. So what kinds of benefits should your company offer to recruit and retain employees? Two factors employees look for in companies today are discussed below.

1. A generous benefit plan
The first way to retain workers is to offer a generous benefit plan. In surveys, employees list benefits as one of the most important reasons they stay with a company. Health and life insurance benefits are standard, but to stand out as an employer of choice, your company must ensure that its benefit program offers many options to employees.
Your company's benefits are available to everyone, but not every employee will use every benefit. Having a variety of benefit choices shows your employees that you value each of them. The more benefits you offer employees, the more likely they'll be to stay with you. For example, you may want to subsidize or reimburse employees for child care or elderly care costs, fitness club memberships, or educational programs that enhance an employee's knowledge.

2. A flexible corporate attitude
Another way to retain employees with benefits is to have a flexible corporate attitude. Work is more dynamic and creative than it was 50 years ago. Fewer factory and routine jobs are available. Much of today's work can be done anywhere there's an Internet connection and access to a company's intranet. This means the paradigm of a 9-to-5, Monday-through-Friday workweek is becoming obsolete.
It used to be that a supervisor could look out his office window at 9 a.m. and see his staff busily working. Now a supervisor may see empty desks as employees come in at different hours or work from home on certain days. As the type of work people do has changed, so have corporate attitudes about when and where that work gets done.
More and more employers are allowing for flexible schedules and telecommuting by their employees. Often, employees set their own schedules. Supervisors meet with employees once a week and keep in touch through e-mail. This has meant that management has had to let go of some control and can no longer micromanage, but usually the employees work just as hard—and are often happier.
Many companies are also recognizing the need for their employees to better balance work and life. These companies have accepted the fact that today's workers often value family over work responsibilities. They want employees to satisfy their obligations to the company as well as to their families. Therefore, these companies are willing to allow employees to adjust their schedules so they can meet both demands.
Technology plays a big part in making these 21st-century schedules work. Even when they're away from the office, employees can easily keep in touch with managers and clients using a variety of tools, such as e-mail, faxes, cellular phones, and the Internet. These technology tools enable employees to work seamlessly and meet deadlines, no matter where they are.
Benefits are important to every worker. The more you can offer and fit into your corporate culture, the less likely employees will be to leave for a company that offers better benefits. A generous benefit plan and a flexible corporate attitude are two factors today's employees look for in an employer. Remember, you can retain the valuable employees you have and recruit new ones by offering excellent benefits.