If you operate a small business, one of the most important assets you have is your employees which is why you want to do whatever you can to retain them. What may surprise you is that it is not salary that keeps employees at a specific company. Instead, employees often remain at a specific business for the employee benefits they are offered. As a small business owner, you want to provide benefit packages for employees that will encourage them to stay, but you don’t want to waste money on benefits they won’t find useful. After healthcare and retirement, these are the top ancillary benefits employees prefer most.

One of the employment benefits that people claim is most important after healthcare and retirement is paid time off. Many employers require their staff to take time off without pay or offer extremely limited days off throughout the year. Unfortunately, those employers may find that they have higher than normal turnover. In addition to paid time off, some employees report that they would like to be able to carry over vacation or sick time into the following fiscal or calendar year and not be forced to “use them or lose them.” This is especially true of sick time as a sudden serious illness or injury could lead them to need a significant amount of time off.

As part of your benefits for employees, consider adding corporate wellness programs which also ranks highly when employees are surveyed about voluntary employee benefits. Wellness programs may include free gym memberships, lunchtime walking clubs or free fitness trackers. Anything that promotes wellness, from free screenings for certain illnesses to healthier options in your cafeteria or breakroom are designed to promote employee health. You can reach out to groups like the American Cancer Society, American Lung Association, American Diabetes Association or American Heart Association to learn more about free screenings as part of your employee wellness programs. You can even convert an office space into a small gym where employees can workout during the workday. Include free fitness classes as part of your wellness programs for an added benefit.

One thing to include in your employee perks programs is flexibility in work schedules to allow for more family time. Although you don’t need to make schedules so flexible deadlines cannot be met, allowing an employee to work from home on occasion to spend time with their family or limiting weekend or night hours to encourage more time with their family is an excellent part of benefit packages for employees. Telecommuting is another benefit for employees that is well-received. If your company has work that can be done from home using the internet, allowing a staff member to work at home even one day each month is seen as one of the best employee benefits programs.

Although everyone finds a pay raise beneficial, there are other ways to recognize an employee for going above and beyond their job duties using employee recognition rewards. Employee incentive programs such as periodic bonuses are a great way to recognize them for a job well done. Recognition programs for employees could also be gift cards to local establishments, special parking places or plaques that are prominently displayed recognizing them for their accomplishments. If you can also create an employee recognition rewards ceremony that acknowledges them in front of other staff members, you could encourage more employees to go above and beyond.

Allowing your employees to bring pets to work are popular employee perks. People are extremely attached to their pets and allowing them to bring the animal to work with them may encourage them to spend a few more hours at the office during crunch times. Offering pet insurance as part of your company health benefits are employer benefits pet owners would find extremely beneficial. Pet insurance covers the cost of veterinary costs if the animal becomes sick or injured and some even cover the cost of preventive care, like routine shots or check-ups.

One way to reward employees is to provide them with on-site childcare. Parents are often distracted by the fact that their children must attend a childcare facility where they don’t know what is happening during the day. Providing on-site childcare as one of your voluntary benefits can be a relief to working parents who will then be able to focus more on their job duties without worrying about their children who are being cared for at a more distant location. As part of your employee rewards programs, on-site daycare does not necessarily need to be free but should be lower cost than nearby off-site daycares for it to be considered part of your employer perks.

As part of your perks program for employees, consider offering continuing education as a employment benefits. You can create a benefit package for employees that pays for a college degree or simply arrange for extensive training related to what your staff does each day. You can arrange for your accounting office to receive specialized training in federal guidelines or your front desk staff additional courses in customer service. If you choose to add college course reimbursement as part of your employee benefits, you can have the employee sign an agreement to remain with the company for so many months or years after they obtain their degree. Some companies also offer student loan debt reimbursement. For example, you can offer to pay a set amount for each year your employee works for you, a perks program for employees that could help them tremendously.

Employee benefits programs should include free or discounted products or services. Allowing your employees to have free or discounted products that you sell is actually free advertising for your business in addition to being a way to reward employees. It also allows your employees to be your quality control department. They will report back if something they purchased as part of their employee incentive programs has an issue so that you can address the problem before a customer has the same issue. Another option is to create an employee discount program that will allow your staff to get discounts on many different types of goods and services. EmployeeandMemberDiscounts.com can help you set up the perfect employee rewards programs that provide discounts on many different items.

Your perks programs for employees can be as unique as your company. If you live near the ocean, you can allow your employees to spend time at the beach during the workday as part of your employee wellness programs. Some companies offer free ice cream or other treats during the day as one of the employer benefits. You can offer free paid time off for volunteering as part of your benefits for employees. Use your imagination when creating recognition programs for employees or conduct a survey to determine what voluntary benefits would be most beneficial to your staff. Voluntary employee benefits do not have to conform to any traditional employer perks but can be tailored to suit your own unique business.

EmployeeandMemberDiscounts.com offers savings on a wide range of goods and services that were previously only available to employees of specific industries or members of special organizations, but can now be part of your ancillary benefits. Now, they can help you set up your own employee rewards program. Their employee perks specialists will create a collection of discounts that your employees can actually use. There is no membership fee and they can sign up at any time. As soon as they register, they can begin using the discounts as part of your employee perks programs. They can find savings on travel, health and other important goods or services.

If you are looking for wellness programs or other employee perks, contact EmployeeandMemberDiscounts.com today to learn how they can help you set up your own discount program. Learn more by calling today or filling out the easy online form to speak to our talented employee perk specialists.