Benefit packages are an important part of recruiting, motivating, and retaining the best employees. Even though benefit costs are rising, it's important to align benefit programs with your organization's overall business strategy. One common question employers have to decide on is the number of hours an employee must work to be eligible for full benefits.For a Limited Time receive a
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Get Your Report Now!Over 250 employers responded BLR's 2010 poll, “How many hours must an employee at your organization work to be eligible for full benefits?" The responses are shown below and compared with the 2005 poll results.
Hours Worked
|
2005 |
2010 |
>35 |
35% |
31% |
30-35 |
43% |
55% |
25-30 |
10% |
5% |
20-25 |
10% |
5% |
<20 |
2% |
3% |
The most notable change over the 5 year period was a 12 percent increase in employers who now offer full benefits to employees that work at least 30-35 hours per week. However, the poll shows a 5 percent drop in employers who are offering full benefits to employees who work between 30-25 and 25-20 hours per week.
Factors to consider when determining benefit packages. There are several factors employers should consider when deciding which benefits to include in their organization’s packages, as well as which employees are eligible to receive partial or full benefits. Three important factors for organizations to consider are:
- What benefits your organization can afford?
- What benefits will attract and retain employees?
- What benefit vendors provide a quality product on a consistent basis?
Will healthcare reform affect employee benefit packages? Recent and upcoming changes to healthcare may affect organizations’ benefits packages. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) does not require employers to provide healthcare insurance for their employees. However, beginning in 2014 employers with at least 50 full-time employees, who are employed for more than 120 days of the year, will have to choose between providing minimum essential coverage under an eligible employer-sponsored plan or be subject to fines.
See what other organizations are doing. BLR recently conducted a survey on healthcare insurance trends. See how other organizations are trying to adjust to the rising costs of healthcare insurance by reading the summary of BLR’s 2010 Healthcare Insurance Practices Survey.
The article overview, More Companies Kept Healthcare Costs Down in 2009, is also available on Compensation.BLR.com.