Recession forces businesses to rethink employee perks - bizjournals:

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Many of the Valley businesses contacted for this storuy declined to comment about theirdcost savings, even thougg struggling industries such as construction, financial services, real estate, the media and the public sectotr are enduring a variety of cost-cutting Still, a few Phoenix-area businesses acknowledged curtailiny business travel, hiking co-pays for benefits, and reducingg some amenities and perks, whilwe some others said they aren’t cutting benefits or perks. has askeed employees to pay more toward theidr benefits to keep those offerings and make it throughytough times, said Katherine Cecala, the charitable group’s chief operating officer.
Some companiews are dictating the cuts, but othera are giving employees the choicde of what to keep and what to get rid of in the face ofneedecd savings. “Even in tough times, if your staff isn’ t operating productively and happily, the servicre to clients suffers,” said David Eichler, a principal of Phoenix-basef . “So what we did, rather than just blindly slashingh the budget ofeverything perkish, we estimated how much attritionb there would be in the business and cut coste by the same percentage. Then we took the part of the budgef that covers things like stockinvgthe kitchen, and assigned it to our associates.
We wantede to give them ownership — dare we say an allowancre — to preserve what was importantto them, but do it Marianne Jennings, a business ethics professor at Arizon a State University’s W.P. Carey Schoolo of Business, said companies are cutting perksx and benefits not onlyfor rank-and-file staff, but also for companhy executives who are underf scrutiny in the wake of the Wall Street bailourt and firestorms over CEO pay and executivre retreats. “I am seeing that the perks such asfinancialp planning, cars, etc., are dwindling. Payingg dues for clubs, country clubs, etc., is goinf by the wayside,” Jennings said.
“I also see that companiea are even balking at paying for participation in charitable golf She also said businesses are scalingt back on college tuition reimbursement Dona Nutini, an employmentg attorney with law firm , said some cost-consciouse employers are finding savings in new healthb and dental plans as providers offer discountsx to new customers. recently had its employees staryt paying more for cableboxes — but that was because of a tax liabilityg issue, not the economy, said spokeswomanm Andrea Katsenes. The telecommunications company still is offering its employee free cable and reduced phone she said.
Some businesses not only are keeping all of theie amenitiesand perks, but also are addiny new ones. Phoenix-based , for recently opened a chilc care and fitness center at its northuPhoenix headquarters, said spokes­woman Jessica Vice President Elizabeth Driscolll said the Scottsdale-based Web domain firm has not cut any perkzs or benefits.