Totally Integrated Employee Benefits

Dr. G C Mohanta, BE(Mech), MSc(Engg), MBA, PhD(Mgt)

Professor

Difficulty of WorkersWorkers are experiencing great difficulty due

to work and family responsibilitiesMany employees are single parents or

members of dual income families No one available at home during working

hours to care for family

Work and Family Programs

Companies instituting work & family programs as part of “totally integrated employee benefits system” & providing

child care at reduced cost care for mildly ill childrenparenting support groups“beeper-alert” program during family emergencytime-off program in which parents can take time off - to accompany their children on the first day of

school or - to attend parent-teacher conferences

Advantages of Work and Family Programs

Family-friendly benefits help employees- to strike a proper balance between work and

family life- to increase their overall productivity - to reduce absenteeism It can help oranisations - to remain competitive in global market - to attract & retain valued employees & motivate

them- to reduce turnover and improved recruitment

Totally Integrated Employee Benefits

Examples of totally integrated employee benefits:• Work schedules with - Flextime- job sharing, - condensed workweeks and - telecommuting• Employee assistance programs to help employees

cope with personal/family problems/financial concerns- family leave- adequate health care coverage- elderly care- resource and referral services

Flextime

Some employers allow flextime For flextime working, the office should be

coveredSufficient employees must be available at

worksite when neededFlextime allows employees - to choose their own work hours- to work same no. of hours each day, timing may

vary

FlextimeMost important feature of flextime:Employees are permitted to strike a balance

between their personal or family lives and their careers

With flextime, companies can - increase their overall productivity, - reduce absenteeism, and - better retain valued employees

Flexible Work SchedulesFlexible Work Schedules reduces turnover and

improves recruitment Job sharing, telecommuting and condensed

workweeks are used to attract qualified applicants

It help employees who want to work, but are not in a position to work a set 40 hours per week

Job sharing system usually allows two people to work on part-time basis & to split duties of one full-time job

Each employee is paid accordingly  

Condensed Work Week

Under condensed workweek, number of hours worked per day may be increased

Number of days in the workweek may decrease (known as 4/40)

Variations of condensed workweek may include reducing total hours worked to 36 or 38 hours

TelecommutingTelecommuting allows employees to work at

home or while travellingWith IT employees are able to interact &

communicate with persons at their officeGiven opportunity to modify work schedules,

they will not make choice between career & family

They will have no problem juggling between - career and family life

Employee Assistance Programs (EAP)EAPs are designed to help employees to cope

with stress, personal, emotional or financial concerns or family difficulties

Main focus of EAP programs is to help employees resolve their problems, in the workplace environment

Employees may be provided with in-house assistance, counselling, or referrals outside the company

Public sector employers can economically provide such programs as they value their employees

Dual-Career Families

Dual-worker families with husband and wife working are growing

“Traditional” families where husband was only working are declining

Participation rate of mothers in labour force are increasing

Rate for unmarried mothers (single/widowed/divorced/ separated are increasing

Mothers with children under a year old are also increasing

Dual-Career FamiliesThe choice of dual-career family is for

reasons as follows:- future financial stability, - providing a stable home - providing college education for the childrenSome families may decide that at least one of

the parents should stay at homeEmployers can help dual-career families to

allow choosing work schedule modifications, such as, “flextime” or “job sharing”

Family-Friendly Organization

Employers can offer following family-friendly benefits :

• Flexible work schedules• On-site/near-site child care• Sick-child care• Dependent care reimbursement account• Homework assistance programs• Extended leave care• Elderly care• Telecommuting• Time-off benefits for children’s school activities• Employee Assistance Programs

Family Care BenefitsWhen employees are at work, they are

mentally not “detached” from family concerns & responsibilities

Work and family are interdependentFamily matters can have a great impact on

work performance and successes in lifeIncreasing concern about family issues due to

increase of women in workforce

Child CareEmployers can provide non-health benefit like child

careChild care is in high demand among single-parent

and dual career familiesChild care benefits can be on-site day care facilities,

discount vouchers or financial subsidies, & sick-child care

At least one parent required to stay at home to care for children

Previously women used to care for children & household, but today they need to work outside home

Child CareSome employers are providing child care

assistance to their employees They are offering some benefits, schedule help,

or other services relating to child care They may provide on-site day care at no cost to

employee or for a moderate fee This benefit can be an effective recruitment aid

and can reduce absenteeism Many employers extended some form of child

care benefits to their employees Some offers sick/emergency child care programs

and Some provides child care centers

Child CareChild care arrangements were exclusive function of

family Today on-site and near-site day care are more

popular forms of child care benefitsAnother common child care benefit is dependent care

reimbursement account It allows employees to pay for qualified child care

expenses with pre-tax benefitsMany companies have on-site /near-site day care

centers/nursery & elementary school to teach grades I & II  

Elderly CareMany employees are responsible for caring their

elderly parentsEmployee is caring for - an ill elderly parent - his or her own children and - trying to pursue a careerSome employers are providing these services to

employees’ children& also to their disabled & elderly dependents

 Employees over age of 30, currently spend 10 hours/week for giving care to an older relative

Some workers who care for aging parents are forced to quit their jobs to do so

Child Care & Elderly CareCare for children/elderly & disabled dependents

have been viewed as outside concern of companiesThe expenses and arrangements for such care, have

been born by employeesEmployee is- subjected to distractions,- missing from work for emergency reasons and - taking children and elderly dependents to doctor &

hospital Lost productivity due to this can cost a company

considerable amount of moneyMany workdays loss/year is attributed to

employees ,caring for an elderly relative

Health CareEmployers with 20 or more employees are mandated

by law to provide medical benefit to the employee Health care has become fastest growing costs, due

to- longevity - much needed medical care, and - increased costsPeople were required to sell their homes &

possessions or have faced death previously as- they lost their jobs unexpectedly or - they have inadequate health care coverage

Tuition Reimbursement

Employees should achieve their personal goals & also should focus on organizational goals

This can be achieved through tuition reimbursement program

Tuition reimbursement can be beneficial to employer & employee.

Tuition reimbursement programs compensate employeesThe amount of reimbursement is contingent upon the

grade actually received by the employeeThe employer is also benefited as he can utilize the

knowledge and skills acquired by the employee

Job SecurityIf employees are asked to rate which is most

important to them - job security, salary, or job recognition?

The overwhelming response would be job securityEmployees should be continued on the job and should

not be removed on silly groundsA good salary response is very closely aligned to that

of job security Many successful organizations are using

“performance-based pay” to motivate their employeesIf employers want to minimize turnover , they should

ensure that employees receive pay in accordance with their worth