In the course of my working life, I’ve worked places where the salary was bad and there were no fringe benefits, places where the salary was bad but there were some nice fringe benefits, a place or two where the salary was decent and the fringe benefits were plentiful and places where the salary was mediocre but the fringe benefits were pretty decent. Of course, you optimally want a big salary and lots of fringe benefits.
One of the places I worked I had to take meeting minutes at manager’s meetings where these people who had their health insurance paid for 100% by the company (and it was GOOD coverage, too), bitched because they’d have to start paying co-pays for their families. Not PREMIUMS, just co-pays for office visits and soforth. This was because the premiums for the REGULAR (non-management) employees were so high that many of them were opting out of the insurance. Their master plan was to FORCE employees to take the company’s insurance. They backed off this after they had 60% of the employees who were informed they were going to HAVE to be on the company insurance turn in letters of resignation.
I’ve always appreciate the perks that came with a job.. whether it be free sodas being available or a company-paid Sam’s Club membership or 5 weeks a year paid vacation time. I enjoyed having an amount of money I could spend each year on “professional development”. But there is one benefit I ran across that seems very inconsequential until you have an actual NEED for it… it then becomes a HUGE perk! It’s free feminine hygiene supplies in the bathroom on a day when you weren’t prepared (because you were early/late/in a hurry). The VBC (Very Big Company) where I am now employed has this perk and I am ever so grateful.
Sometimes, my friends, it’s the little things that make a BIG difference in employee satisfaction!
