The manager said, "You name it, and some employer is probably giving it as a benefit." The manager's assistant, doubting, said, "Gopher traps. They can't be giving gopher traps."
Probably not gopher traps. But employers do come up with some very unique and imaginative benefits to lure and keep the best people. Some examples:
– At a firm in Ohio, employees making under $40,000 a year get up to $1,000 a year education tuition for dependents. The owner wanted to make sure the children of employees had a way to go to college. This benefit started in the early '90s. In a workplace with 115 employees, four or five of them a year use this benefit. The payoff for the employer? Goodwill. It is talked about a lot as one of the valued benefits.
– Employees at another Ohio employer can tap the company for help with purchasing cars and trucks. If an employee wants to buy a car and needs the money, the company will loan the down payment or enough for a low-priced used truck. Interest-free. The firm, with six employees, is in the painting business in five states.
– A Florida company believes in keeping employees happy with the use of people-centered programs to make their company a desirable place to work. Following are ways the employer motivates employees:
- A day at Universal Studios in Orlando, FL.
- Cash bonuses, extra vacation time or a gift certificate.
- A Holiday Angel Tree, to encourage employees to become "angels" to needy children.
- The firm has a three-day orientation for new employees. Courses in core values and presentation skills, as well as industry-related material are offered.
- New job openings are always posted internally. The emphasis is to make every effort to hire and promote from within for every possible opening.
- Every quarter the firm has a meeting to keep employees informed of progress and initiatives.
- Holiday bonuses are distributed in the morning. Following a luncheon at the CEO's home, all employees are given the afternoon off.
- Commitment to Excellence Awards are given to employees at each quarterly meeting. Recipients are nominated during the year by their peers for awards such as these:
- The Great Job Award presented quarterly recognizes associates who demonstrate a daily commitment to excellence.
- The Team Spirit Award is presented annually to the associate who encourages teamwork in his or her department and throughout the company.
- The Image Award is presented quarterly and recognizes associates who are effective in providing professional telephone service. They are "caring, considerate, committed, creative, controlled and contagious" when talking to clients.
- Years of Service Award for employees who have been with the company for 3, 5, 10, 15, and 20 years, include a commemorative gift for reach employee.
- Recognition on Associates' Day. Each employee is given a $10 gift certificate to a restaurant and an extra hour of paid lunchtime.
- Each year an annual picnic is held for all employees and their families at an Orlando area theme park.
- A Thanksgiving luncheon for associates. A meal is catered and served in three seatings. The menu includes salad, rolls, turkey, ham, dressing, vegetables, punch, and dessert.
The employees at a credit union in Florida have all kinds of reasons to report to work.
A major way the credit union encourages perfect attendance is with cash awards. Employees get points monthly for perfect attendance and can trade their points for paid time off in addition to regular paid holidays and paid sick time and personal time. There's a drawing every month among employees with perfect attendance for cash awards from $5 to $45. And employees with 10 years of perfect attendance get a $5,000 bonus.
Employees are encouraged to log up to 15 miles a week in a walking program. Log 300 miles in the first year and new employees earn a paid week off.
- A Chicago company offers family-ill days. Employees can use up to seven family-ill days a year to stay home to care for a sick child or elderly parent. Employees can carry over three days from the previous year.
- A Wisconsin employer has a company-subsidized concierge who runs errands for employees. Employees pay $5 an hour for the services. Some other benefits: A day-care center that also provides bus service to and from elementary schools; a park, fitness center and a swimming pool for employees; a private resort where employees can vacation at subsidized rates.
- A California firm doesn't even keep track of employees' sick time. Employees can come and go as they please. They can even bring their dogs to work. And after every four years of service an employee gets a six-week paid sabbatical.
The examples of motivational tools used by businesses around the country just go to show that people are inspired and encouraged by different rewards. Often a little creativity and deep thinking go farther than you might imagine.
Benefits Expand Dramatically
Imagine an employer in the 1920s in Kansas City, MO, wanting to encourage good attendance.
Her name was Myrtle Fillmore (co-founder of the Unity School of Christianity) and in the 1920s the school had a staff of 500 people. She came up with a system of rewards to provide incentives for employees to get to work on time and to avoid absences.
"We organize into small groups, with captains of teams, to manage the attendance of all the workers. We make it a rule that everyone must be here before eight o'clock in the morning, and back at the desks by 12 noon. Any tardiness counts against a team, and the winning team must be entertained by those who lose out. It shows real effort on the part of those workers, who live in all parts of the city, and some of them in the country... to go through the year without being tardy or absent. There's a little reward for a year's perfect attendance -- a day and half holiday."
Fast-forward to the 21st century. Unity School (which is the worldwide publisher and distributor of millions of copies of Daily Word and Unity Magazine) now has 600 employees and has expanded benefits far beyond the "day and a half holiday."
Following are employee benefits for 21st century Unity employees:
- Low cost country club membership (to swim, fish, play golf, tennis).
- Discounts at Unity Bookstore.
- Special gifts at all coworker meetings.
- Free coffee and tea.
- Cash bonuses for referring a new hire.
- Suggestion Award Program cash awards.
- Casual dress day every Thursday. (Unity employees work a four-day week.)
- Credit union.
- Medical insurance, as well as dental, life, accidental death/dismemberment insurance.
- Personal accident insurance (cost shared by Unity).
- Long-term disability insurance (cost shared by Unity).
- Paid vacation, sick leave and seven paid holidays.
- Funeral leave of three days.
- Tax-sheltered annuity program.
- Retirement plan, totally paid by Unity.
- Discounted tickets to Worlds of Fun, Oceans of Fun, Silver Dollar City.
- Smoking cessation classes.
- Winter car assistance.
- Co-workers Appreciation Day (a time for games, prizes, refreshments and fun held one day a year).
- Bowling and golf leagues.
- Aerobics classes and wellness program.
