HR Insights Blog

Are Companies Offering Flexible Summer Hours? View the Poll Results

Mon, 23 Apr 2018 08:03:00 -0400

Despite the chilly temperatures outside, summer is just around the corner. To help employers prepare for the summer months ahead, we asked organizations to share any special “summer hours” benefits that they offer to their employees.

Between Thursday, April 12 and Thursday, April 19 a total of 77 participants responded electronically to ERC’s “Summer Hours Poll”. In order to provide the most reliable and accurate results, data was cleaned, all quantitative data was analyzed using statistical software, and qualitative data was coded where applicable.

Key Findings

Most participants in the poll do not offer any type of summer hours type benefit to their employees. Among employers who do have some type of summer hours in place, the most common option was simply to provide employees with more flexibility with regard to their work hours during the summer.

For example, individual employees have more flexibility to the start and end times for their work day, while other participants shift the organization’s overall core business hours on the whole.

Several employers also noted that their organizational culture is such that employees are always provided flexible work hours, telecommute options, etc., so for them an additional summertime benefit was not applicable.

Results

The results of the poll are summarized in the figures below.

Organizations that provide employees with a summer hours type benefit

The results of the poll are summarized in the figures below.

Figure 1A: Alternative/flexible schedules provided as part of summer hours*

Figure 2: Time period over which organizations provide summer hours

*Please note: Figure 1A and Figure 2 only include participants that indicated they provide a summer hours type benefit in Figure 1.

Figure 3: Demographics of the 77 participating organizations

Compensation & Benefit Survey Data

ERC publishes compensation and benefit survey data covering local, regional, and national samples across a wide variety of industries.

Access Survey Data

3 Voluntary Benefits to Attract and Retain Top Talent

Fri, 13 Apr 2018 16:03:00 -0400

Voluntary benefits can be a great addition to add to your benefits package for employees, many at no cost to the employer. Voluntary benefits give employers the ability to balance employee needs with bottom line costs, spotlight the value of your benefits package, and increase employee engagement while protecting employees from life’s unforeseen circumstances.

Voluntary benefits are typically set up to be automatically deducted during the employer’s payroll process. This administration is extremely valuable to employees as they don’t have to do the tedious work of purchasing a separate policy, saving, and moving money around to obtain these benefits. All of this is done by their employer.

A few of the most popular voluntary benefits right now include Accident Insurance, Pet Insurance, and Critical Illness Insurance.

1. Accident Insurance

Voluntary accident insurance can be extremely beneficial to employees with children or who enjoy more adventurous activities in their free time, although accidents can occur in any situation. No one is ever prepared for an accident so a benefit like this may be a “lifesaver” for individuals or families who are faced with the financial burden of getting the proper care they need.

Workplace accidents would still be covered by workers’ compensation. Voluntary accident insurance would help cover the out-of-pocket costs an individual may face when an accident occurs outside of the workplace.

According to Matthew Byrnes, Employee Benefits Consultant for the Oswald Companies, "rising healthcare costs have caused many employers to offer health plans with higher deductibles, resulting in employees needing help with these first-dollar expenses. Voluntary benefits, such as accident or critical illness insurance, help employees fill the deducible gap. The employer’s benefit package is enhanced, helping to attract and retain great talent, and providing employees the choices they want."

2. Pet Insurance

Pet insurance has risen over the years to be one of the most in-demand benefits employees want. Employees without expensive veterinary bills distracting them are more focused and ready to take on the workday.

Ashley Qualls, Director of Human Resources at Embrace Pet Insurance, says, “When our employees are happy at home they’re happy at work and vice versa. It’s up to us in HR to set our teams up for wins, both professionally and personally. Pet insurance is such a benefit because pets are a part of the family, and when you remove the financial stress of dealing with their care, it provides significant peace of mind. Employees who feel taken care of at their jobs are going to work harder and stay engaged.”

Employees want pet insurance because pets are considered family for a large part of the population. People want the best for their pets, but if the vet bill is too high, they could face a difficult decision. Pet insurance gives employees options, including our preferred partner, Embrace.

3. Critical Illness Insurance

Critical illnesses can cause a debilitating effect on the lives of individuals or families, financially, emotionally, mentally, and physically. Critical illness insurance as a voluntary benefit was created to offer a bit of relief for families or individuals going through the devastation of facing a critical illness.

There are a number of critical illnesses covered by this type of insurance, but it is not all-inclusive. The three primary critical illnesses covered include cancer, heart attack, and stroke.

Health insurance does not typically cover everything and employees may use this insurance to offset the costs of deductibles, copays, medical equipment such as wheelchairs, and even their rent or mortgage that an individual with a critical illness may not be able to afford from missing work.

Preferred Partner Network

ERC’s preferred partner network offers organizations who participate in ERC Membership exclusive savings, with services that include HR and employee benefits, recruitment, health & wellness, HR technology, and more!

View the Partner Network

Do You Have a Competency-Based Selection Strategy?

Tue, 03 Apr 2018 08:59:00 -0400

When it comes to hiring, looking at the competencies of a candidate can support your talent management strategies. Looking at job-related competencies helps with selection, promotion, training and development, performance management, career planning, and succession planning.

According to research by William C. Byham, Ph.D., competencies are “the behaviors, knowledge, and motivation require to achieve objectives, and they facilitate reaching particular objectives.”

By utilizing competency-based interviewing in your talent management and hiring processes, you can strategically determine the behaviors, knowledge, and motivations required to achieve certain objectives related to the different job requirements. Competency-based selection decisions can also be made more quickly and accurately.

Byham’s research also notes the various benefits of a competency-based approach:

Interviewers are able to “pursue detailed information” because they have a set list of competencies to be looking for
There is less margin for error because the interviewer has clear competency targets
Interview questions can be strategically decided to cover multiple competencies “to increase the quantity of information obtained

If you are experiencing troubles with turnover or engagement due to the “wrong-fit” and selection issues, try incorporating competency-based interviewing into your strategy.

Here are a few sample competency-based interviewing questions:

1. Can you tell me about a time when you identified a new solution to a work-related problem?

This question is designed to test problem-solving and analytical skills.

2. Give me an example of an instance in which you handled workplace conflict.

This will help assess multiple competencies such as problem solving, resiliency, communication, and initiative.

3. What is your brainstorming process?

This will help identify where the candidate’s strengths are when it comes to strategic-thinking, communication, motivation, and judgment.

Before asking candidates competency-based questions, develop a strategic approach to your selection processes.

You can begin by developing a list of competencies such as resiliency, organization, communication, sales ability, and more.

Then go through current job descriptions, research positions, and talk with managers and leadership to identify which competencies each position at your organization should require.

This process can be very time consuming and tedious but may greatly benefit your organization (and HR department) in the near future and for years to come.

ERC provides employee selection consulting services to help you choose the best people.

Learn More