Beyond salary
Salary often steals the spotlight when you’re considering a new job, but these less obvious benefits can be worth thousands of dollars — or more — in compensation each year. Inquiring about them before you accept (or decline) an offer can help you maximize your income and work satisfaction in the long run.
A tax-advantaged retirement account
One of the most obvious benefits is a retirement account, like a 401(k), that allows you to invest pretax earnings. It’s even more valuable if your employer matches what you contribute. A typical policy offers 50 cents per dollar saved up to 6 percent of salary; more generous policies might match the full dollar.
Flexible spending accounts
Many employers offer workers the chance to direct pretax earnings into a flexible spending account that can be used to pay for health care, commuting or child care expenses. Employees file their receipts for reimbursements; if they don’t claim their money by the deadline, which is usually the end of the calendar year or March 15, then they lose it. But if they do claim the funds, they can save a lot of cash by using pretax dollars.
Free meals
Some companies offer their employees free meals when they’re working late hours, which is a double-edged sword. Sure, you’ll get free meals, but it might come with the expectation that you’ll be spending more of your time in the office. In-house meals are common at large companies in Silicon Valley, but for many workers this perk is more likely to mean free pizza and takeout. Either way, it can help reduce your monthly expenditures on food.
Unlimited sick days
At the accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, workers don’t have to worry about maxing out their sick days or eating into vacation for doctors’ appointments for children with sore throats, say, because the company offers an unlimited number of paid sick days. Chairman Bob Moritz explains that he believes employees are more productive if they have the flexibility to handle other responsibilities, like caregiving for older parents, outside work, too.
On-site services
Some companies offer health care clinics and child care services on-site, which means workers don’t have to take more time away from the office when they’re feeling ill or to handle day care drop off and pick up. While these services are more common at large companies, some smaller ones offer them, too, as a way to keep employees happy.
Lenient social media polices
With Facebook and Twitter becoming increasingly popular, many companies are spelling out their rules regarding personal accounts, including whether employees can have them, refer to their place of employment in profiles and log in during work hours. More lenient polices can make it easier for workers to run side businesses on top of their full-time jobs and bring in extra income (as long as those side businesses don’t conflict with their full-time work).
Health insurance
The type of health insurance your employer offers, and how much it pays toward the premiums, can have a big impact on your take-home pay. You might have multiple options; copays, premiums and other costs can all vary based on what your employer chooses to offer. In addition, many employers offer life insurance, disability insurance and other types of insurance that can increase your financial security.
Flexibility for caregivers
With a growing number of working baby boomers taking on responsibility for caring for their aging parents, work flexibility for caregivers is a hot topic among human resources departments. Many companies are offering greater support, including flexible hours, dependent care assistance programs and even just more information on available resources for employees who are also caregivers.
Access to a credit union
Taking a job with some employers, including the military, federal government and private companies, means access to a credit union. Credit unions are governed by their members and on average offer higher returns on savings and lower rates on loans.
Retirement and other financial advice
Some companies offer in-house workshops on financial literacy, saving for retirement, paying for college and other common employee concerns. That kind of information can help keep workers on track with their long-term savings and investing goals.
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