Why Employee Benefits are So Important

If you find yourself asking why you need to consider adding benefits to your employment packages, then chances are good that your business is already in some hot water.  Any company that is so clueless about the want and needs of its employees has probably lost quite a few of the good ones to competitors because of ignorance (or stubbornness).  Although some small businesses choose to forego benefits simply because they don’t have the capital on hand to support such initiatives, you might be surprised to learn that there are options that won’t cost the company a dime (such as voluntary health care, which employees pay for, and telecommuting, which could significantly reduce the office space needed to conduct business).  Here are just a few good reasons to start offering a benefits package.

1. Attract talent.  If you’re one of the few companies in your industry that still refuses to offer benefits like medical insurance, 401K, or even carpool rewards, you will probably have a difficult time in recruiting bright young talent.  Even if you’re willing to offer more salary as compensation, most applicants will be looking for a lucrative package that involves benefits in addition to earned income.
2. Stop brain drain.  You must face the fact that anyone offering a more attractive package than you (i.e. something more than just a salary) is going to be able to poach your best employees right out from under you.  So unless you want to train people just so you can prepare them to work for the competition, then you need to take the time to find out not only what your adversaries are offering that you aren’t, but also what prospective employees are looking for in a benefits package.
3. People expect them.  These days health insurance is the minimum a business should be offering in the way of benefits simply because it has become as expected as competitive wages.  You’ll see your pool of interested applicants dwindle as they discover that you don’t offer health coverage, dental and vision, a retirement plan, or anything even remotely resembling a comprehensive benefits package.  And in most cases you’re going to have to offer a lot more if you really want to entice the best and brightest workers.
4. Employees want options (and you should, too).  It’s not necessary to offer the best benefits around, but you should definitely provide a lot of options.  Everyone that works for you is going to have different wants and needs.  To keep them all happy you’re going to have to create options for all.  Of course, what this really means is that you have to shop around in order to find a diverse array of benefits packages, which will almost certainly help you to figure out which ones will also benefit the company.
5. Healthy, happy employees are more productive.  If your employees feel that they’re being bilked, what kind of job do you expect them to do?  Likely they’ll do just the bare minimum to get by until they can find a better job.  Most people want more than just a paycheck these days; they want to feel appreciated.  By offering competitive benefits you can endear your company to employees and make a good name for yourself in the industry, meaning that the next time you go to hire you’ll have the cream of the crop turning out to apply.

Sarah Danielson writes for Midwest HR PEO Chicago, a Chicago employee benefits management company. Midwest HR offers innovative HR solutions to organizations that are focused on productivity, profitability, and growth.

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