Original Date: January 7, 2019

Employee perks can and do have an impact on recruiting and retaining top talent within all of our organizations.  Many companies are becoming creative in the perks they now offer to new hires and marketing during the recruiting process.  Not every organization can afford to offer extreme job perks and unlimited vacation time.  However, the small things do matter to employees and these small and unique perks continue to make a difference.

Below are the 9 unique perks offered in 2018:

  1. “Airbnb provides its employees an annual stipend of $2,000 to travel ($500 per quarter) and stay in an Airbnb listing anywhere in the world.
  2. Reebok offers its employees CrossFit classes and access to a full on-site gym. The classes, gym or gym discounts is something that all of our organizations should consider offering as part of the wellness option for our workforce.
  3. In-N-Out Burger offers its employees a free Double-Double burger and fries during each shift. A perfect transition, after the wellness package Reebok offers its workforce.
  4. Scripps Health offers pet health insurance for cats and dogs. This is a unique insurance option but is growing in popularity.  This is an area we could also review as an additional option for our workforce.  It might be work asking our insurance brokers about this?
  5. Netflix provides an entire year of paid maternity and paternity leave. The new parents also have the option to return part-time or full-time and can take additional time off throughout the next year.  This is one of the better maternity and paternity packages in the country.”[i]
  6. “Starbucksoffers a College Achievement Plan, a program that allows all eligible U.S. employees (those who work 20 hours or more per week) to earn a bachelor’s degree through Arizona State University’s online program, with full tuition coverage.”[ii]
  7. “Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants in San Francisco offers three days leave, Mars Inc. offers one day and flexible hours, California-based software company VMware and Boston-based Maxwell Health both offer flexible days, and Trupanion, a Seattle-based pet insurance company, offers employees one day. Canadian company Shoppers Drug Martlets employees take days off if they have a loss in the family, and they say that includes a beloved pet.
  8. Mars Petcare was one of the first companies to offer pawternity leave. The company offers its employees ten hoursof paid leave when they get a new pet, and they can bring them into the office after that.”[iii]
  9. Who could forget about student loan repayment plans? My favorite discussion topic! There are a variety of companies and states offering these perks to employees, in a variety of ways.  As we see changes to the tax code, more companies might be offering these perks to help reduce the $1.5 trillion dollars we have in outstanding student loan debt in the country.  Stay tuned, this continues to evolve based on applicants needs.

This is a shortlist of unique perks that organizations are now offering to their workforces.  As the needs of the workforce continue to evolve, so too will the perks being offered.  Organizations should consider creative perks as part of the recruitment and retention of great workers.  If you’re unsure what to offer, ask the workforce what they are interested in.  We cannot afford to offer everything, but unique offerings can and do make a difference.

NYS Minimum Wage Changes 2019:

burrrrr

[iv]

Additional Information:

“Beginning in January 1, 2019, federal contractors must pay covered workers at least $10.60 per hour (an increase from $10.35 per hour in 2018).  In 2019, tipped employees being paid in connection with a federal contract must be paid at least $7.40 per hour (an increase from $7.25 per hour).”[v]

Additional Legal Updates

12-Weeks of Paid Bereavement Leave:

“Gov. Andrew Cuomo has vetoed a bill that would have allowed workers to take up to 12 weeks of paid leave after the death of a family member.”[vi]  This happened on 12/31/2018.

– Matthew Burr, HR Consultant

[i] https://www.thisisinsider.com/best-job-perks-companies-twitter-facebook-google-2018-5#16-evernote-offers-macaroon-baking-classes-16

[ii] https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/5134-cool-job-benefits.html

[iii] http://www.businessinsider.com/companies-give-employees-pawternity-leave-2017-3#some-companies-offer-pet-bereavement-leave-too-5

[iv] NYS DOL Tweet

[v] https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/new-year-new-employment-laws-a-national-10358/

[vi] https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/37728/20181231/ny-governor-vetoes-bill-allowing-paid-bereavement-leave

 

Published by Mathew W. Burr, MJ-LEL, MBA, MHRIR, GPHR, SHRM-SCP, SPHR, CPHR

Matthew Burr has over eleven years of experience working in the human resources field, starting his career as an Industrial Relations Intern at Kennedy Valve Manufacturing to most recently founding and managing a human resource consulting company; Burr Consulting, LLC. Prior to founding the consulting firm, the majority of his career was spent in manufacturing and healthcare. He specializes in labor and employment law, conflict resolution, performance management, labor and employment relations. Matthew has a generalist background in HR and provides strategic HR services to his clients, focusing on small and medium sized organizations. He is a retired Assistant Professor of Business Management from Elmira College, an Adjunct Professor at Alfred State University and Collin College. Matthew is also the SHRM Certification Exam Instructor at the college, his students currently have an 80% pass rate on the SHRM-SCP and 92.3% pass rate on the SHRM-CP. Matthew works as a trainer Tompkins Cortland Community College, Corning Community College, Broome Community College and Penn State University. He also acts as an On-Call Mediator and Fact-Finder through the Public Employment Relations Board in New York State, working with public sector employers and labor unions. Matthew has publications at the Cornell HR Review, Business Insider, New York State Bar Association, Expert 360 (in Australia). In early 2017, he published his first book, “$74,000 in 24 Months: How I killed my student loans (and you can too!).” Matthew has an associate's degree in business administration from Tompkins Cortland Community College, a Bachelor of Science degree in business management from Elmira College, a master's degree from the University of Illinois School of Labor and Employment Relations in Human Resources & Industrial Relations and a Master’s in Business Administration specializing in entrepreneurship from Syracuse University. He currently holds a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR), Global Professional in Human Resources (GPHR) and the Society of Human Resource Management Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) certifications. Matthew has been featured on CNN Money, Fast Company, Fits Small Business, Magnify Money, My Twin Tiers, Namely, Student Loan Hero, Smart Sheet and CEO Blog Nation.

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