13 Employee Benefits You Should Consider Offering

It can be a real challenge for a small business to keep employees interested in sticking around for the long haul. Larger companies always seem to have the upper hand, especially when it comes to offering enticing employee benefits. For a small business to remain competitive, you have to be sure that the employee package is enticing enough to keep them interested.

However, it is still possible for a small business to survive. By making smart choices of using employee benefits solution software and meeting employee needs you can entice good workers away from the larger impersonal conglomerates and beat the big boys at their own game.

Here are 13 employee benefits that every small business needs to consider offering.

1. Medical Insurance

Medical insurance should be a given for any type of business. Make sure that the coverage you provide is an all-inclusive package with everything from preventive doctor visits to surgery and prescriptions. It will not only keep your employees from looking elsewhere, it will also save you money on tax breaks in the future.

2. Vision Care

Another health-related insurance that can be an attractive is vision care. Plans that include eye exams, prescription glasses and/or contact lenses can ensure that your workers can be prepared for any ongoing vision costs.

3. Free Meals

Offering free meals can not only be enticing to employees but it also keeps them on the job. Rather than going out to local lunch spots, employees are more likely to stay on the premises and network with their colleagues.

4. Life Insurance

Whether you pay the premiums or they are deducted from the employees’ salary, life insurance provides the beneficiary with a death benefit upon the death of the employee. While it is not a required benefit, it offers a certain level of security and peace of mind.

5. Retirement Plans

There are many different types of 401 (k) plans that you can offer employees. If you feel your company is not financially strong enough to offer dollar for dollar matching, there are other plans that don’t require such a long-term commitment.

6. Fitness Package

If you want your workforce to stay healthy, consider offering a fitness package. This could include a membership to a gym or having gym on-site as a cost-effective way to keep them in shape. Healthier and more fit employees are happier and less likely to take off sick, so you’ll benefit both ways.

7. Employee Assistance Program

An EAP is an intervention program created to help employees to resolve many of their personal problems. It can provide counseling in marital, financial, or emotional issues so they can better focus on their job.

8. Flexible Work Schedules

Get rid of the standard nine-to-five work schedule and allow your employees to work when they feel they can be most productive. Flexible work schedules give employees a way to better balance their work with their lifestyle without having to spend one penny more.

9. Parental Leave

Rather than offering maternity leave to women, allowing fathers time off to bond with their children as well can benefit the family and your business. By giving this type of leave to both mothers and fathers, it makes room for women to stay on the job longer and it contributes to a healthier and happier family.

10. Pet Insurance

In most American households, pets are not just appendages that you can enjoy but they are a part of the family. It can be very rewarding for an employee to discover that their pets can have health, life, or accidental insurance just like the rest of the family.

11. Tuition Reimbursement

New things are learned every day. Offering tuition reimbursement keeps your employees motivated to learn new things so they can become more proficient at their jobs. Your business will also benefit by tapping into new skills as soon as they are acquired.

12. On-Site Day Care

Statistics show that most of the time an employee takes off from work is from parents who are taking care of the needs of their children. An on-site day care allows parents to be close to their children, saving them lots of time and emotional stress.

13. Fertility and Adoption Assistance

Just as your insurance coverage would pay for a pregnancy, the same help should go to couples who need fertility and adoption assistance. Statistics show that one in every eight couples need this type of help, yet it is extremely expensive. Providing this type of insurance will cover these expenses and give a couple the chance to change their life completely