News

June 29, 2008

The Extra Mile - Firms use perks to attract and retain staff

By Jerry Lynott jlynott@timesleader.com
Business Writer
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It used to be getting a foot in the door was the hard part for job seekers, but some companies these days are making it easier, even paying for some to get to the door.

Trainees who travel more than 10 miles to the Network Solutions call center in Butler Township receive a $20 gasoline card.

Benco Dental provides a cash bonus to employees who refer a new hire. Guard Insurance Group pays for employees’ vacations.

Companies here and throughout the country are always looking to hire qualified and passionate employees, whether it be in a call center or trained medical and insurance professionals. What’s changed through the years is how they go about it by going beyond the basic health benefits, holiday pay and retirement plans to offering perks from heavily subsidized refreshments to hefty sign-on bonuses.

“We are very confident, once potential employees come to work here, they’ll love it,” said Joe Pickett, vice president of customer service at Network Solutions’ Luzerne County operation.

The Web design and support services company based in Herndon, Va. has four sites in the United States and Canada. It employs approximately 250 people at the local office.

When the gas bonus ends after six weeks, trainees have another week before they’re on their own, said Pickett. After that they can look forward to much more during their employment such as a 401(k) plan, health, dental and vision insurance coverage, homeowners and auto insurance, flex time, company training, paid time off to participate in community outreach programs and employee recognition programs.

Nearly five years ago, when Mark Evenson of Hazleton started, the company provided debit cards and made available a package of services to set up a domain name on the Web and a hosting package. It still provides those services today.

Evenson said he had to be able to use them in order to do his job as a Net Solutions specialist. “So it just made sense.”

He and co-worker Janene Shank, both quality assurance coaches, were attracted to the company by the wages more so than any hiring perk, they said. But since they’ve been there, they’ve been impressed by the culture and rewarded for performance.

“They really work hard to get people with good attitudes,” said Shank, 27, of Hazleton.

And hold on to them, added Pickett.

The company subsidizes the snack machines in the cafeteria with a one-price policy of 25 cents for chips, candy and soft drinks.

It’s also in the process of developing a telecommuting program that should be in place by the end of the year.

Technological advances make it possible for companies such as Network Solutions to develop such a program, said Norma Gaffin, director of content for the online job and career services provider Monster.com, used by The Times Leader and other newspapers across the country. Plus, companies are recognizing the changes in the work force and what they must do to attract and keep passionate and quality employees.

“They’re going toward a work-life balance,” Gaffin said.

At Guard Insurance Group, the company provides an economic counterweight for employees with its vacation pay program.

It is a novel perk, and to be eligible an employee must be there for five years, said Carl Witkowski, chief administrative officer. After passing that benchmark the company offers the employee $2,000 for a vacation. After 10 years it increases to $2,500 and then to $3,000 for 15 years and more, said Witkowski.

“That was something that was part of our culture since the inception of the company,” he said. It was instituted because “a lot of people didn’t treat themselves to a vacation.”

Guard takes more of a holistic approach with its incentives and gears them toward recruitment and retention, Witkowski said. Most of its 300 employees work in Wilkes-Barre. When creating its compensation and benefits packages, it annually surveys what’s being offered locally and within the industry. The company’s retention rate is proof that employees are pleased with what’s being provided from wages to vacation to its wellness program. The industry retention rate is approximately 89 percent, and Guard has exceeded that for the past nine years, Witkowski said.

Gas cards for trainees might seem to be a gimmick, but they say something about a company and what it thinks of its employees, Monster’s Gaffin noted. The message the recipients receive from Network Solutions is, “They understand gas is a problem and they’re doing something to make my life easier,” she said.

Benco’s bonus referral of $300 also says something about the relationship between employee and employer – the employer values employees enough to allow them to vouch that their referral is right for the company. “It’s one of the best recruiting strategies,” Gaffin said.

The referral must be employed for six months before the bonus is paid, said Benco’s George Rable, from the company’s corporate office in Wilkes-Barre Township.

“Generally speaking, much more often than not it’s worked out for us,” he said.

Another sign of the times is the sign-on bonus, especially in the health-care industry.

Wyoming Valley Health Care System offers up to $6,000 to a select group of prospective employees. Registered and graduate nurses, physical, occupational and respiratory therapists, pharmacist and imaging technologist positions are in demand, said Jim Carmody, vice president of human resources for the health-care system that operates Wilkes-Barre General Hospital.

“Each of those is a profession with a real variety of opportunities outside the hospital setting,” Carmody said.

For that reason they are offered the sign-on bonus, he explained. They must commit to work for a specified time period or else return the money paid out shortly after their hires.

The health-care system employs approximately 3,200 people and slightly less than two thirds work in the hospital.

The bonuses, though effective, can also cause some friction with longtime employees.

“Every organization needs to recruit new employees,” Carmody said. “We work just as hard to retain existing staff.”

Those employees are provided enhanced time off and opportunities for growth in their retirement plans, he explained.

Even before they’re hired, graduates of the speech language pathology program at Misericordia University are schooled on retirement planning.

“We train them before they get out,” said Glen Tellis, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of the speech language pathology department.

With more jobs available than there are speech pathologists, recent graduates can pick and choose from offers across the country, Tellis said.

The school graduates between 22 and 26 students in the master’s program annually. The national average is approximately 4,000 graduates. But when considering the number of school districts, rehabilitation hospitals and nursing homes that are hiring, the pool isn’t very deep.

“They’re in a very good place,” Tellis said.

Choosing from the sign-on bonuses, loan forgiveness programs, cars, cell phones and housing offers can be overwhelming.

One graduate turned down a $60,000-a-year job with an hour’s commute for a lesser-paying job closer to home, Tellis said.

Another, he said, opted to accept a job paying $70 an hour instead of an annual salary. By going that route, the graduate will earn $134,000 a year rather than $55,000.

Checklist for job seekers

Monster.com’s director of content Norma Gaffin suggested job seekers compile a work values checklist to determine what matters most to them as a person and employee. “You need to do a little soul searching,” she said.

Among the things to consider:

• How important is it to you to help others and society?

• Do you want to feel respected for your work?

• Do you prefer to work on a team or are you an entrepreneur?

• Do you want to be wealthy?

• Do you want to live in a big city, abroad or in a rural setting?

• Do you want to have fun in your life and work?

For more information on the checklist, visit the career advice section at Monster.com.

Jerry Lynott, a Times Leader staff writer, can be contacted at 570 829-7237.

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