“Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.”(Richard Branson). There is a great truth to this statement on the ground of needing to look out for and care for our employees. Whether there is 1 or 25, it is our job to ensure they can give their all in the workplace. One way we can do this is by setting up some sort of benefits package for your employees.
The thought of offering benefits can seem impossible at first but there are many different options available and the gain can be tremendous. When you think about company moral we need to envision removing avoidable stressors. Having employees worried about their health and costs affiliated with that can have that negative affect. Finding something that works for the majority and within your means can be a huge deal breaker. Even competitively speaking, a good employee will choose a company that offers benefits in comparison to a like minded company without one.
The cost can be the biggest factor for small businesses. The good news is that there are ways of bringing the costs of employee benefits down. First of all having benefits is a way of keeping wages slightly lower. If you are covering some of the costs, it can be compensated by a lower wage. Secondly there are different employee percentages. Your business can cover a certain percentage and the rest of the cost falls on the employee. There is also an option of HSA (healthcare spending account), where monies prior to taxes is taken off of paychecks and put into an account. From there your employees have money set aside for medical reasons.
All in all, if you are thinking about adding a benefits package to your business it is important to speak to a few brokers. Not just one, but see what and who is out there. Ask questions to make sure you are getting everything you want for you, your business, and your employees.
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