Salary obviously is a top consideration when you're looking for a job, but a growing trend in recent years shows that benefits also play a role in employees' decisions. Take, for example, the recent survey from jobs and recruiting website Glassdoor, where 3 in 5 people said they consider benefits and perks among their top considerations before applying for a job.
The Glassdoor survey didn't just compare the types of benefits offered – it attempted to learn more about the quality of those benefits. First, the surveyors narrowed their focus to eight industries with the most active job openings on the Glassdoor site: finance, information technology (IT), manufacturing, education, health care, business services, retail and restaurants/bars/food services.
Then they looked at three popular benefits with enough data on Glassdoor to statistically compare: maternity/paternity leave, 401(k) plans and free lunch and snacks.
Among the industries studied, the highest-rated overall benefits are in finance, IT and manufacturing. Food service and retail ranked lowest overall.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 87 percent of private sector employees have access to unpaid family leave; only 12 percent have access to paid leave. Finance, IT, and education topped the Glassdoor list for maternity and paternity leave. Retail was near the bottom again, along with business services and health care.
One of the most common benefits today is an employer-subsidized 401(k) plan that helps employees save for retirement. There was little variation in employee rankings for the eight industries Glassdoor studied, with just over a half-point's difference between the top (finance) and bottom (food services) average ratings.
The final benefit studied – free food and snacks – had the largest variation in average rating. While it's been a perk in the food service industry (and some others) for years, free food is a relatively new bonus for technology employers. Whatever they offer is well appreciated, since IT was the runaway leader in the Glassdoor survey with an average 4.06 of 5 stars. Business services and manufacturing followed, with education coming in last.
Although food services was in fourth place for free food and snacks, that was the industry's highest ranking for the survey.
The Glassdoor surveyors concluded that while access to benefits matters, the quality of those benefits also makes a difference to employees. Benefit packages can be much more diverse than salary ranges in general and within an industry. That gives employers a chance to bring more to the table and possibly sway potential employees who are looking beyond dollar signs.
Glassdoor launched its benefits survey on June 18, 2014, and pulled sample data for analysis on September 20, 2015. More than 1,200 U.S. employers were represented in the eight industries studied.
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