RSM Resources

Although creative workplace perks are relatively rare since the dot-com bust put an end to pool tables in the lunch room, some companies are turning to low-cost perks to help lure talent — knowing they can’t afford to spend more on already-expensive medical insurance and other benefits.

Whether it’s bringing a pet to work on designated days, paying a quarter for a soft drink from the office vending machine, having your car’s oil changed in the company parking lot or even being reimbursed for tuition, midsized companies are creating a recruitment buzz with these low-cost, yet highly visible, perks.

Before offering these types of perks, however,human resources professionals say your company must have a "ticket to play" in the employee benefits arena by already offering:

• Paid time off
• Health benefits
• Career management
• Programs to address workplace stress

With these benefit pillars in place, marketing all aspects of your company’s benefits package becomes the next crucial element to attracting and retaining employees.

"Companies don’t just talk salary anymore.It’s a total compensation package," says one human resources professional.

Touting programs that promote wellness

To promote the perks they offer, some companies have been loading their Web sites with information that describes their benefits that promote wellness.

Many lifestyle programs are not very expensive if support is telephone-based rather than in-patient, and return on investment can be quite high. If your employee kicks a smoking habit or begins to exercise, he’s likely to be a healthier employee who spends less on medical treatment and misses less work because of illness.

Smoking-cessation and weight-loss programs, or even concierge services to help reduce employee stress, also soften the blow to employees at companies that have raised health premiums or launched health care spending accounts in which employees are responsible for contributing more toward their health care costs.

Because companies increasingly recognize a need to move beyond incremental methods to control health care costs by consumer-driven plans, many try to influence employee behavior through on-site health programs and education. It has become popular to bring yoga, tai-chi or Pilates instructors to conduct weekly lunch-hour classes. Lunch-hour walking programs are also popular. Walking programs cost nothing because there are enthusiastic employees willing to recruit and lead colleagues.

A simple initiative with appeal in northern climates is "summer hours," when workers add an extra hour to the first four days of the week and are then able to have Friday afternoon off to enjoy the brief summers.

Human resources professionals say such flexible scheduling should go even further so it’s tailored for each employee — when possible — to get the work done. Younger workers are insisting on work-life balance that fits their situation, and older workers like flexible scheduling so they can more easily help aging parents. Human resources professionals say there is no indication that productivity falls with flexible scheduling.

Wide-ranging inexpensive perks

Patricia Hamm, executive vice president of human resources for Minnesota-based Petters Group Worldwide, says the company tries to bring services to its employees at no charge.

A dry-cleaning service is happy to visit the company's main office daily. It costs Petters nothing, because dry-cleaning services covet this steady business. Petters also has arranged for an oil-change service that sets up in the company parking lot. Employees pay for the service. Everyone benefits, because employees aren’t using lunch hours, evenings or even company time for oil changes, and it’s one less thing on an employee’s mind.

Although emergency backup child care and elder care does carry some expense, many companies are offering this on a co-pay basis. If an employee’s regular provider is ill or on vacation, they have the option of using the company’s provider 12 days a year. Employees pay $10 to $15 per day. The company contracts to pick up the remainder of the cost, usually about $25. Not only does it send the message that your company cares about family life, it also helps eliminate missed work days due to child-care issues.

Hamm says Petters got creative when it learned many employees would benefit from massage therapy at work. The company offers free 30 minute massages to employees (employees may buy extra time if desired) and pays a fee to their in-house therapists that is less than the employees could receive elsewhere. The upside to the employees is not only helping to manage stress but a "feel good" attitude about the company.

Managers at some companies have elected to let their vending machines dispense a soft drink for a quarter. They contract with the vendor and absorb the difference. It’s a small item, but a highly visible one.

Hamm also says for $250 to $1,000, businesses that don’t receive seminars as part of their employee assistance package can bring in local speakers to discuss workplace topics such as gender communication differences, workplace politics, finances and coping with change. Most cities have a wealth of experts who will visit companies to discuss such topics. If you choose a relevant topic — how to better manage your personal finances, for example — you’re also sending the message that you care.

Some companies might also allow employees to trade unused sick days for vacation days, although more companies are moving to the simple approach of general paid time off. Instead of offering 12 sick days and two weeks of vacation to new employees, more companies are offering a total of four weeks of paid time off, which is actually two fewer days than the standard.

The benefits of visible benefits

Certain benefit offerings have great curb appeal to prospective employees — and might be quite expensive — but some companies fail to understand that only a very small percentage of workers will take advantage of the programs, even if a particular benefit had considerable allure during the recruiting process.

Tuition reimbursement can be an expensive benefit for companies, but most employees don’t use it. Human resources professionals claim participation is considered high if 10 percent of a company’s employees use this benefit.

More companies are also automatically enrolling new hires in the company 401(k) plan, unless new employees choose to opt out.

Regardless of the benefits a company offers, human resources experts note it’s important to remember:

• There’s little new under the sun. Even bring-a-pet-to-work programs are considered mainstream.
• If you add a new benefits component, make sure you can implement it, and be sure to communicate it to employees.
• It’s helpful to provide an annual chart depicting employees’ total compensation package so they understand that what the company pays them goes beyond salary.
• Employees don’t leave companies, they leave managers. Benefits don’t keep an employee at a company. Employees are retained through good relationships with supervisors.