When you consider dry cleaning, commuting, lunch and sometimes dinner, there are a lot of costs involved with going to work every day. While some companies have offered employees perks that have become the stuff of legend, (think pet insurance, home cleaning services, free concert tickets) simple, direct and well communicated changes can be truly appreciated by employees and enhance company culture over the long-term.
Offer a Gym Membership Discount
It’s on almost every list of perks made available to employees at top companies. The gym membership. The good news is that it allows access and encouragement for free or at a discount for employees to make good on promises to get in shape or stay in shape. The risk is that it’s only valuable if enough employees take advantage of it. That’s where good communication comes in.
To get gym membership access started the first thing is to make a list of all the gyms in the area. The closer to the office the better but so is having a lot of options to choose from.
Next is to reach out to see what corporate programs they offer. And if the gym doesn’t already have a corporate partnership program in place, volunteer to be the first.
Then, take a survey among employees to find out would be interested. No obligation is necessary at this point. It’s just good to have number to help negotiate rates.
Finally, when it comes time to select a gym for an acceptable corporate rate, consider free classes and other wellness programs in addition to the membership fee as you negotiate.
Start Bringing Lunch to Work
Going out to lunch is more expensive than bringing lunch from home. But a sandwich in a brown bag can hardly be considered the high point of anyone’s day. The good news is that there is a new wave of creative and healthy lunch recipe options cooked up by our foodie culture that bring employees eating together in the lunch room and save as much as $200 a month!
It takes leadership to lead the way. Take the first step by bringing lunch regularly and see who follows.
Make the Most of Business Relationships
A vendor who helps make corporate purchases on IT equipment, office supplies or gifts for clients, might also be able to provide corporate discounts for employees if they’re not doing it already. Check with representatives for your supplies to see what’s available and continue to make that a request for any future relationships.
Make Saving for Retirement Easier
The economy has been healthy. Employment rates and average income have increased steadily. Yet, Americans still put away too little toward retirement.
Last October, we saved only a little over 3% according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Compare that to 5.5% for workers in the UK and 19.3% for those in Japan. Now would be a great time to review how often and effectively employees are informed about company retirement programs and to ensure that information is easy to find and to understand. Those who have not participated might finally do so, and those who are participating will feel better about the future.
