WHY BENEFITS AND SERVICES?
Nearly every organisation in our country provides benefits and services to its employees. These fringes continue to grow in their importance. Several reasons account for this trend.
More than salary structures and financial arrangements, there is a need to attract and retain competent personnel- An employee joins and stays with an organisation which guarantees attractive fringe benefits. Besides, vacations along with holidays and rest breaks help employees mitigate fatigue and enhance productivity during the hours actually employees do work.
Similarly, retirement, health-care and disability benefits may allow workers to be more productive by freeing them of concerns about medical and retirement costs.
Fringe benefits help build up a good corporate image. Schemes like housing, educational institutions, and recreational activities bring benefits to the society at large, in the case of some. The benefits are direct. For a religious programme or a sports event or a company school, the company draws its clientele not only from the employees but also from surrounding communities.
In others, such as housing, there are indirect gains in terms of reduced pressure on the limited living accommodation and release of public funds for additional housing programmes. All these have wider dimensions than immediate gains to the employees.
Thus, an organisation, with the introduction of fringes, seeks to enhance employee morale, remain cost-effective, and introduce changes without much resistance.