Archive for benefits
Going to work is costing more these days
Do you remember when gas cost .89 cents a gallon? I do, I was a kid then but I remember when it hit a buck and people freaked out. The cost of going to work these days is getting expensive and with no end in sight you only have a few choices, take public transportation, move closer to work, or get a higher paying job.
So if those are not viable solutions is there one? We can sure try. In a perfect world getting to work never seemed like a problem but with those days long gone what I mentioned above doesn’t seem like such a bad idea. If we finally solve the public transportation debate here in Hawaii we will be a lot better off, but since we are in the present we want a solution now. Some companies in certain industries can try telecommuting in order to increase retention and lower employee fuel bills. Is it possible? Yes! Best Buy did it in their corporate offices with ROWE the Results Only Work Environment, the goal of Best Buy was to judge performance on output instead of hours. The results, a 35% increase in productivity and a lot less trips to the office. A majority worked from home. The lower gas bill must have been nice.
This option is not going to work for every business, but it will for some. In any case you need to communicate with your employees before they start considering alternatives, I am not talking transportation. We are lucky we do not have to deal with the enormous commutes that some people deal with on the mainland but it is going to have an affect here regardless. The best way we can deal with this now is by carpooling or the bus, but companies need to develop a plan quickly to keep their employees from leaving because of the pump. If you are looking for a way to increase retention at your company then consider taking an active role in reducing their fuel costs with public transportation credits, flexible scheduling for carpoolers, or telecommuting, unless you work for the oil company though.
Parking benefits are scarce.
One of my first recommendations to companies looking to make their benefits package more attractive is to pay for parking. It plays a large role in salaries these days. If you’re spending too much money on marketing, and recruiting it may be time to put this money to work for your company in the way of attaining, and retaining employees with better benefits. In most cases these benefits are reserved for upper level management if given at all. The parking war in Hawaii is only going to get tighter in the future as we grow, and unless you are a fan of public transportation (which is not a bad thing) get used to the inconvenience.
We need to start looking at alternatives as a State, and as employers before we end up like Seattle or San Francisco. The alternative to the parking benefit could be a state subsidized public transportation credit for employers who offer it to their employees who ride the bus, the boat, or in the train. Parking is not a problem for everyone in Hawaii, but when you work in downtown Honolulu it can be as simple as whether or not people want to work for you. You don’t want to lose that spot!
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