The term “work-life balance” has become a part of mainstream conversations about jobs and career opportunities. Work-life balance can mean something different to everyone. This makes it challenging for employers to determine what benefits make the most difference to the best potential employees.
Luckily, there are some universally recognized perks that can give your company a leg up when recruiting candidates. Read this article to learn about four benefits that will make your organization appealing to top-notch talent.
1. Remote Work Arrangements
Since 2020, many companies permanently switched to hybrid or fully remote workforces. Remote work opportunities create a larger pool of candidates because they’re not subject to traditional geographic restrictions and relocation costs. Employees today don’t want to give up living where they like to get the job they love. Remote work is a key benefit that is well worth the operational adjustments that come with it.
With the right human resources experts, complying with the nuances of payroll, taxes, and labor standards is very doable, even internationally. When hiring globally, businesses often engage an employer of record or professional employer organization. Before making the EOR vs PEO decision, make sure you understand the difference between their services. If you have a branch office in the country where you’d like to hire workers, you can use a PEO. If not, an EOR can hire workers on your behalf, saving you from having to establish legal entities abroad.
Offering flexible work environments is no longer a nice-to-have: it’s a must-have. A June 2022 Gallup survey reported that three in 10 of all remote-capable employees are working exclusively remotely. To add such workers to your talent pool, you’ll need to offer remote work.
2. Flexible Schedules
For decades, many U.S. employers equated productivity and efficiency with being in an office for eight hours. This work model sounds fine in theory until you factor in the roller-coaster called life. Flexibility is important whether an employee is caring for children and/or aging parents, managing personal health conditions, or pursuing education. Anyone who has experienced a life-changing event will testify to the power of a flexible schedule.
A flexible schedule is usually defined as letting employees begin and end their workday at times that fit their needs. This arrangement often mandates that employees overlap with onsite team members for part of the workday to enable collaboration and uninterrupted workflow. Otherwise, so long as they fulfill required job duties, the time they start and stop their day is up to them.
Compressed workweeks are another way to offer schedule flexibility. One popular option involves employees working 10 hours a day, four days per week. The extra day off each week can reduce the stress of juggling work and outside commitments.
3. A Competitive PTO Plan
All employees value time away from work, especially when they are paid for it. Paid time off is therefore one of the most valued components of a benefits package. The U.S. Bureau of Labor reports more than one-third of private sector employees receive 10-14 days off in their first year. The number of days off per year typically increases with employee tenure. To enable your team to recharge and live life, create a culture that encourages employees to use their well-earned time off.
Flexibility in PTO usage policies is often just as important as the quantity of time employees are allowed. Many companies give employees more options in how they use their PTO by offering consolidated leave programs. This approach combines vacation, sick, and personal days into a single bank of time for employees to withdraw from. Consolidated leave programs give employees a sense of autonomy around how they use their time off.
Top job candidates look for competitive benefits packages that let them navigate life situations from year to year. Whether that’s recovering from a prolonged illness or taking the vacation of a lifetime, they will appreciate a generous, flexible PTO plan.
4. Financial Investments
There are a number of ways businesses can give back to their employees. One of the most powerful is helping them save for the future by offering a 401(k) plan and matching employees’ contributions to it. An employer match can greatly impact an employee’s retirement savings, and it’s an excellent way to increase employee retention. That’s important for your business, as it’s generally less expensive and disruptive to keep good employees than to hire new ones.
Profit sharing is another highly sought-after benefit that invests in employees. A profit-sharing model distributes a portion of the business’s profits to employees in addition to their salary or wages.
This benefit creates a two-way street of positive outcomes. When the business does better, so do the employees. The possibility of a higher profit-sharing distribution increases an employee’s investment in the success of the company they work for. Engaging employees this way provides a sense of ownership, as they help to determine their own rewards.
A Mutually Beneficial Relationship
Businesses that offer the most balanced benefits packages consistently attract the best employees. A balanced benefits package includes elements that support an employee’s current and future life situation and career goals.
Gone are the days of job candidates choosing an employer by the highest salary and wages alone. When companies take care of the whole person they hire, instead of just the worker, everyone wins.