A reader writes:
I run a small firm with two locations and 12 employees, and we’re struggling to attract candidates. We meet the median wage for the area, but I can’t really go above that. We offer decent benefits (15 days PTO, 10 paid holidays, subsidized health insurance and dental insurance, free life insurance, free short-term and long-term disability insurance, a tuition reimbursement program) but can’t offer the other perks that the management books talk about like flextime and work from home due to the nature of the jobs we hire for. We try to treat our employees well by buying lunch, surprising them with gift cards, handwritten thank-you notes, casual dress days, team-building days (think escape rooms and dinner out) — things that fit into a small budget but still say “we appreciate you.”
How can we be more attractive without increasing our payroll?
This question — along with two others — is answered in full over at Inc., as part of a series revisiting letters from the archives.
The other questions addressed in that column include:
- Is it weird to have my video on if everyone else is off-camera?
- My new hire is starting on my last day of work
