Making the Most of the Perks at Work: Part TwoIn Part One of “Making the Most of the Perks at Work,” we discussed the two key fringe benefits you might be offered at work: retirement and health plans. In Part Two, we’ll focus on other important benefits, including family leave, tuition reimbursement, stock options, flexible spending accounts, employee assistance programs, expense reimbursement, and more.
Time OffSome employers lump all days off together, including paid vacation, sick leave, holidays, and personal leave, while others allocate a set number of days for each category. There may be a “Use it or Lose it” policy in effect, or you may be able to carry over your time off from year to year. Some businesses let you trade in your accrued time for cash or donate days to other workers who may need them. Be sure you know the policies! If you’ve worked for a year at a company that has at least 50 employees, and if you worked at least 1,250 hours during the prior year, you must be granted unpaid family leave of up to 12 weeks if you or a family member has a serious health condition or you need to care for a newborn, newly adopted, or foster child. Assuming you inform your boss (and who wouldn’t?!), your health benefits must stay in effect and you must be allowed to return to the same or a similar job. Tuition ReimbursementAlong with on-the-job training, many companies pay part or all of the tuition for courses and licenses directly related to your job. Some reimburse you for study that’s unrelated to your work and others will cover education costs for your spouse and children. Any which way, if an education benefit is available to you, it could prove to be very valuable. You may actually be reimbursed for taking career counseling classes, exploring new fields or subjects that seem interesting, or picking up the skills and credentials that will open new doors – where you work now and/or where you want to work down the road. And the same may be possible for your loved ones. That’s a priceless benefit! Is there a special license or certification that could buy you a more secure future? Will the boss pick up the tab? If you and your family can learn on your employer’s time and nickel, you’ll be that much further ahead – for free. Tip: Do you have a gift for languages? If so, consider becoming fluent in another one. The demand for competent multi-lingual workers is rising, and your additional language skills could almost certainly benefit your current employer. If there are enough plusses, maybe you can get the firm to pick up the tab. Ask! Stock OptionsStock options aren’t just a perk for top executives any more. Increasingly, they’re being used to get employees focused on improving shareholder value, as it boosts team spirit. While some companies issue their stock as part of retirement plans, many companies are also giving employees incentives to buy company stock, through a stock option plan that is not a part of their retirement plans. Stock options give you the right to buy a certain number of company shares, generally anytime during the next ten years, at an attractive price (the option “strike price” or “grant price”). What you hope will happen is that the price of the stock will rise, and you can “exercise” your option. In other words, you want to buy low -- at the strike price, and sell high -- at the exercise price. You lose the option if you don’t exercise it. You also lose it if the current market value of the stock is below the strike price when you’re ready to buy. If you quit or are fired without having exercised your options, you can still use any that are vested (i.e., that you’ve held for a given period, typically one to five years). Options that aren’t vested are forfeited. While stock options can be a great way to increase your wealth, they can also be risky. What goes up may come down, and while you can reduce your risk when you buy at an attractive price, make sure you’re not too heavily invested in the stock of the company where you work. Keep your portfolio diversified, selling some of your company’s stock from time to time (according to the company’s rules) and investing elsewhere – even if the stock seems to be doing very well. Visit the National Center for Employee Ownership for more information on stock options. Flexible Spending AccountsWorkers fund their own Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) by contributing a set amount from their pre-tax income. (Some employers also add their own contributions.) Since pre-tax dollars are involved, there’s a built-in bargain on benefits. For example, say your combined federal, state, and city tax bite amounts to 35%. Do you know that it ordinarily costs you about $1.54 to have $1.00 you can spend … after taxes? Since FSAs allow you to spend pre-tax dollars, your FSA lets you buy $1.00 worth of benefits for just $1.00. Medical or Health Care FSAs are used to pay for expenses that your health plan won’t cover. Examples are deductibles, co-payments, glasses, dental work, over-the-counter drugs, and prescriptions. The amount you can contribute to your Medical FSA will be set by your employer, but when it comes to a Dependent Care FSA, which can help pay for the care of a child or an elderly parent, the limit is $5,000 a year. Some plans also allow participants to buy other insurance, such as long-term care, group auto, homeowner’s, or additional life and disability, or even to buy and sell vacation time. To make the best use of an FSA, carefully weigh your future needs against your past expenses. Don’t put in more than you expect to spend in a year. It used to be that workers who didn’t use all their FSA money by year-end would forfeit whatever was left. Since 2005, employers have had the option to add a 2.5 month grace period, so folks now have a bit more time to spend their FSA dollars. Make sure your boss has gone for the extra time before you put off FSA spending and be certain to use the money within the allotted time. While the details will probably differ where you work, you can view the best information on the Internet about FSAs and the programs available to federal employees. Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)To take advantage of this relatively new fringe benefit, you set up a special account where you can stash a certain amount of pre-tax money that you can spend on almost any medical or dental expense. As of 2007, individuals can put up to $2,850 a year into their HSAs, and for those with families, the amount is $5,620. Money you don’t spend just stays in your HSA, piling up tax-free earnings for you. (If you withdraw any of it for non-medical purposes, you’ll owe tax, plus a 10% IRS penalty if you’re under 65.) Your HSA must be paired with a high-deductible health insurance policy, a safety net for steep bills. The combined cost, however, can be lower than you’re used to paying for traditional insurance. If you’re eligible for one of these new accounts, their tax advantages and flexibility may make them worth checking out. While it’s easiest if there’s an HSA program at work, individuals can set up their own plans. Get more information on HSAs. Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs)You may be surprised to discover the range of EAPs where you work, which may include free short-term counseling and financial planning, as well as “lifestyle” or “wellness benefits” such as fitness programs, weight loss, and smoking cessation programs. So if you or someone in your family has a problem with alcohol or substance abuse, work or personal stress, emotional distress, money troubles, relationship issues on or off the job, or a legal tangle, EAPs can help. Besides reducing family stress and improving your ability to do your job, these programs may save you a good bit of time and money. Overall, they offer more stable, productive workers to employers. Find out what kinds of EAPs are available where you work, ideally before you might need them. Also make sure you know how your privacy will be guarded. Get Yourself ReimbursedMake sure you are reimbursed for all approved job-related expenses. If you travel for work, you probably get reimbursed for your travel costs, including meals on the road. If you aren’t collecting for mileage to and from the airport, or if you’re making business phone calls from home after hours, you’ll want to have the company pay for those too. Keep receipts and good records and submit them promptly. A few dollars here and there may not seem like much, but they can really add up. Other Possible Job PerksYou may be surprised to discover the range of benefits that are now being offered by companies eager to keep their workforce satisfied, stress-free, and productive. On the child-care front, there may be a subsidized on-site day care center, an emergency or sick-child care center, or child-care referral services. Other benefits may include: family friendly shifts (9 AM to 2 PM), on-site health care, a fitness center, free massages, reduced price or free cafeterias and snacks, the right to telecommute, paid sabbaticals, free trips, special family and team spirit events, and free transportation. Some of the possibilities may surprise you! Take a look at these two publications, which detail the top one hundred best places to work every year: As you browse through the benefits offered at these companies, consider which ones would be great for the boss and the folks where you work. Think about the best ways to share your thoughts …without alienating anyone or risking your job, of course! Here’s hoping that our series on “Making the Most of the Perks at Work” will inspire you … and your boss. Please let us know! 
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