Do benefits cost or pay off?
by Miki SaxonScott Allen, The Guide for the Entrepreneurs section of About.com responded to a reader’s question about benefits for part time workers, explaining that in the US benefits aren’t required by law for any worker, full or part-time.
So why should companies have benefits? Just think about how much better their bottom line would be without them. Wow!
Then think about how demotivated, unproductive and disinterested their employees would be. Double wow!
The smartest employers offer all the benefits they’re able to offer to the people who work for them, even part-timers. Sure, they’re limited by financial consideration, but they do as much as they can.
- A startup CEO told me that he had insisted on good insurance coverage in spite of his investors’ gripes. Why? Because, he said, his people were more willing to put in 80 hour weeks when they didn’t have to worry about their families. Interestingly enough, his company also offered slightly below market pay and far more modest stock options and still filled their openings with top talent (this was during a boom period, too).
- Another small biz owner I know offers Aflac, exceptional working flexibility and just added a 401K, although many similar-sized companies just moan about how they can’t afford anything.
- My friend, who owns a tiny, neighborhood restaurant, gives her waiters their birthday off with pay—and has almost no turnover.
Part of the problem in large companies is that Wall Street penalizes companies that do take care of their people (Costco) and lauds those that use every trick to avoid spending that money (Wal-Mart).
But make no mistake—taking the best care possible of your people will yield a high return in the form of lower turnover and higher productivity.
April 29th, 2014 at 1:16 am
[…] Providing benefits can raise productivity and reduce turnover no matter the size or type of business. […]