Health Care Ranks in Employment Benefits

Even during the recession, more than half of U.S. workers consider health-care coverage more important than compensation, according to a new survey reported by CBS.MarketWatch.com. Despite the double-digit rise in health-care costs this year, medical insurance remains a deciding factor in Americans’ career choices. Two out of three employees reported that coverage plays a major role in finding or keeping a job, according to a study of more than 525 U.S. workers from consulting firm Hewitt Associates.

“Employees can deal with the increased cost of coverage as long as those benefits are there,” Hewitt’s health-care practice leader Ken Sperling said. “We find a strong desire for employer-based systems because people are just not comfortable going it alone.”

Moderator Comment: Which retailers and CPG companies
are doing the best job of using benefits as a means to attract top talent?

The employed are aging along with the general population
and health is becoming a greater concern. It is also becoming increasingly expensive
for companies to foot the bill. [George
Anderson – Moderator]