If you own or run a business that actually has employees on a payroll, then you will inevitably be faced with the task of recruiting qualified candidates. Obviously, since you care about your company’s success, you want to bring in only the best people, and to do that you need to offer an attractive compensation package, which makes you stand out from the rest of the crowd.
Now, while money is first and foremost a welcome part of any offer, there are other perks that will grab the attention of those valuable future employees. If two companies are offering similar salaries, certain perks make good “tie-breakers”, so to speak. In these days of spiraling health costs, a prospective employee cares about health coverage. Here’s a rundown of the good and bad points associated with providing a health plan.
The Upside
Law Compliance
With the passage of the Affordable Care Act, as of 2015 any company that has fifty or more full-time employees must offer sufficient health coverage or end up paying out money if the employees receive tax credits when they buy their own insurance. So it’s a case of “it’s not just a good idea; it’s the law”.
Attract Professionals
Health care has become a real hot topic over the past few years, and a company that helps its employees (and their families if they have them) get the peace of mind of health coverage is a company that will attract the discerning professionals’ attention. Your company has to stay competitive, and the last thing you want is to lose some potentially valuable new employees to a rival who has a more generous compensation package. Getting sick is expensive; anything you can do to mitigate that makes your company look good. Call it a case of getting what you pay for.
The More, The Merrier
Many insurance carriers have group rates, so offering health coverage to all of your employees makes your business eligible for a discount. And that means you can get insurance for you and your family as well!
Tax Advantages
There are tax credits that you can take advantage of, depending on the business size, which help offset the overall cost. There’s nothing like offering an attractive and expensive perk without shelling out top dollar for it.
The Downside
Bureaucracy
Yes, you have health coverage, which means entering a whole new world of forms, premiums, dealing with insurance carriers, choosing a health insurance plan, and much more. And if you’re not ready, willing, or able to deal with this, it means hiring someone who can, which of course means spending money. Speaking of which …
It Costs!
By offering a health care plan, your company is taking on a new financial burden, and that means more money leaving your coffers. There’s the whole matter of sharing the costs with your employees, but if you make them take too much of the burden, the perk loses its luster and you’re back to square one. If your business ends up paying the lion’s share, then the expense becomes a larger one.
At The End Of The Day …
Back to the original question: should you offer health care coverage to your employees? Well, although providing health insurance is a hassle that means more work and spending money, it’s still an undeniably popular benefit. In fact, you can check here for help in creating a benefit plan your employees will adore.
It becomes a case of spending a little more money in order to not only lure good people into your company, but also doing your part to keeping them healthy, which yields future dividends of increased productivity and diminished absenteeism.