Introduction
Companies worldwide face the daunting task of attracting and retaining employees. The competitive attribute of businesses exacerbates this challenge hence necessitating strategies for attracting and retaining competent employees. One of the mechanisms deployed by companies is utilizing employee benefits. However, the employee benefits must be tailor-made to respond to the employees’ needs and wants. While designing an employee benefits package, infusing the employee’s needs with the organization’s goals is critical for success. Such infusion is pivotal since a deviation might harm the company. Given its crucial role in an organization, employee benefits programs require much scrutiny before initiation. The company must deliberate on some considerations and different programs to select the most appropriate plan. It is, therefore, vital to assess the various concerns and benefit programs that are most suitable for the organization. This paper analyzes the multiple factors pivotal in choosing an employee benefit program and highlights some available employee benefits.
Discussion
Accordingly, there are certain factors that an organization must deliberate on when proposing an employee benefits package. All these deliberations must be pondered or risk high employee turnover (Iqbal et al., 2017). First, it is imperative to factor in an employee’s wants. Adding value to an employee’s life is one of the main objectives of employee benefits, and it calls for bearing in mind what the employee wants. Employees have varying wants, such as affordable premiums, health insurance, and paid leaves. The employee demands must be assessed keenly or risk ruining the company. Even though the employees are significant contributors, the human resource must balance their demands with those of the firm to guarantee sustainability to avoid ruining the business (Iqbal et al., 2017). Employees might overlook their needs while listing their demands for an employee benefits package. Weighing the employees’ needs against their request facilitates developing an effective plan that benefits all parties.
Another critical factor is the employee’s contribution to the benefits covered. The contributions vary, whereby in some, the employer contributes, while some programs require donations from both the employer and employee, such as pension plans (Lussier, 2019). Some of the health insurance plans also necessitate that an employee contribute. When introducing employee benefits that require the employees to contribute, it is essential to factor in the amount an employee is willing to contribute to the benefits covered. Also, some firms place some coverage as a condition for employment. The introduction of any employee benefit plan necessitates analysis through this lens is particularly crucial since it will assist an employee in decision-making. It is critical to provide the employees with information about the demands of the benefit plan if it has the opt-out option, and any consequences that an employee might face.
In addition, assessing the insurance provider before deciding on the employee cover to employ is pivotal. There are different insurance coverage providers in the market from which a firm can pick. There are multiple factors to consider before making the final decision on the insurance firm, such as the firm’s pricing of various employee packages (Lussier, 2019). Ideally, going for the cheapest provider in the market is essential. However, a firm’s pricing might be affordable due to poor performance, such as lacking critical aspects of the benefits package. Also, one must assess the insurer’s terms of renewals, such as rising premiums is essential since the company might opt to change its insurance provider midway due to some shortfalls, which will directly impact the firm (Jean et al., 2017). The plan’s flexibility is worth considering to meet the company and employee needs, sustainability, and the firm’s track record. Carefully selecting the insurance company to provide the employee benefit plan is critical for maintaining highly skilled employees.
Many types of employee benefit programs fall under two different programs. Such programs include income protection programs and pay-for-time not worked programs. The program supports employees financially if they have time off work and suffer a loss of earnings due to illness or injury (Lussier, 2019). The system design covers most diseases that bar employees from working, either individually or in a group. The employer usually takes out the group protection program, whereas the individual employee takes out the personal program. Pay for time not worked, otherwise known as paid leave, is an insurance cover that ensures that an employer continues to pay an employee for the days they have not reported to duty.
Pointedly, the two programs have some similarities while contrasting on some levels. Noteworthy, an employee struggles to balance the needs of work with their personal life’s obligations. Some days, employees do not report to work as they perform some individual commitments. According to Lussier (2019) income protection program and the pay for time not worked program cushion employees against any financial consequences for not attending work. In the income protection policy, employees receive monthly salaries if they cannot work. The employee gets payment after a pre-agreed duration known as the deferred period. Similarly, the amount from the pay for time not worked covers compensates an employee for the time they could not report to work. The two employee benefits serve the same purpose: guaranteeing payments to the employees for the duration when they do not report to work.
However, the two employee benefit programs have some dissimilarities. The income protection program has two formats whereby an individual can agree with the insurer, or the company can negotiate the terms for a group of employees (Lussier, 2019). The firm agrees on the terms of the income protection program and the insurance provider to include various elements. These elements include how long the policy runs, the percentage of salary it pays out, whether it will be funded wholly by the business or the employee pays partially, the eligible employees, and the deferred period. On the other hand, pay for time not worked includes activities such as jury duty, funeral leave, military duty, vacations, sick leaves, sabbatical leave, maternity leave, and unemployment insurance cover the firm provides to the employee.
Furthermore, Paid-leave programs are particularly demanding financially as the firm has to commit to many employees with different needs. Unemployment insurance is mandatory in the US, and each state has laws concerning compensation (Jean et al., 2017). The compensation laws offer employees benefits if they cannot work through no fault of their own. The unemployment benefit provider deducts some amount from the employee’s salary. While the income protection program ensures that an individual receives their regular wage, the paid-leave programs are supplementary employee benefits.
As mentioned earlier, a business can choose from different types of employee benefits available in the market. Besides the paid leave and income protection benefits, there are other benefits that a firm’s management can benefit from by using these programs. The traditional benefits are generalized into medical insurance, life insurance, disability insurance, and retirement plans. One such benefit is flextime, which allows employees to decide their working hours and locations (Wheatley, 2017). Flextime offers flexibility to the employee, making it suitable for many organizations with integrated technology. With technology, employees can work from any location and time to increase firm productivity. Another benefit worth considering in this particular age is skills development which focuses on training employees. These training programs are beneficial to the employees as they will keep them up to date on the current market trends, increasing their productivity.
Additionally, there are other benefits from which the employees can respond to their needs and demands. There is a rise in health concerns due to a sedentary lifestyle, primarily due to working with desktops. Therefore, offering employee programs that target improving their health is vital (Lussier, 2019). The organization can form running groups to help the employees keep fit. Another benefit is the health and wellness program that can include gym membership which focuses on improving employee well-being. Also, the lifestyle benefits program would be crucial to the employees. Employees attach more importance to balancing their lifestyles to create a balance between their professional and personal lives. Employees can also benefit from the work-life balance program, which includes childcare, legal services, and grocery delivery programs. These “other benefits” would assist the management in retaining its employees.
Exempt employees are ideal candidates for the employee benefits package because they receive a regular salary and are not liable for overtime pay. According to Jaworski et al. (2018), employee benefits and incentives motivate employees to become highly productive. Since an exempt employee is legally not paid overtime income, a firm must find a means to motivate exempt employees to work overtime. This aspect is crucial since work might be overwhelming and necessitate the input of all the employees to work overtime for the company’s good (Lussier, 2019). I believe that an employee benefits package offers a business’s competitive advantage, enabling it to stay relevant amidst competition in the market. Paid time off, retirement benefits, and a health insurance package would come in handy for exempt employees. Also, the employees will receive a financial wellness program that will be provided to all the employees, exempt and nonexempt, to cushion them against any financial setbacks by equipping them with financial management skills (Wheatley, 2017). This particular employee benefits package is ideal because it serves the employees’ demands, needs, and the organization’s objectives. Consequently, maintaining highly skilled employees will lead the organization to prosperity.
Conclusion
In conclusion, employee benefit is beneficial for an organization. Employee benefits are a mechanism for attracting and maintaining the most skillful and competent employees who will enable the business to stay afloat and above the competition. The business market is highly competitive, and the human resource management team must establish a practical approach that will enable it to retain employees or risk a high turnover. A business must be cautious about its dealings with employee benefits by considering all the risks involved. Employee demands and needs form the basis of most employee benefits packages. Yet, the firm must consider its business goals and create a balanced act between the employee and employer needs. Income protection and pay for time not worked programs share similarities in enabling employees to receive pay when they did not report to work. Like other benefits, an assessment of the two is necessary to avoid any threats to the business. The firm must also consider the firm offering the coverage to ensure that there are no financial constraints encountered in the future. Overall, employee benefits are crucial and keep a business above the competition.
References
Iqbal, S., Guohao, L., & Akhtar, S. (2017). Effects of job organizational culture, benefits, salary on job satisfaction ultimately affecting employee retention. Review of Public Administration and Management, 5(3), 1-7.
Jaworski, C., Ravichandran, S., Karpinski, A. C., & Singh, S. (2018). The effects of training satisfaction, employee benefits, and incentives on part-time employees’ commitment. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 74, 1-12.
Jean, K. N., Ngui, T. K., & Robert, A. (2017). Effect of compensation strategies on employee performance: A Case Study of Mombasa Cement Limited. International Journal of Innovative Social Sciences & Humanities Research, 5(3), 25-42.
Lussier, R. N. (2019). Human resource management: Functions, applications, and skill development. Sage publications.
Wheatley, D. (2017). Employee satisfaction and use of flexible working arrangements. Work, employment and society, 31(4), 567-585.