Small Business Can Tap Into Abbreviated Work/Life Programs

Balancing the demands of work with the responsibilities of life outside the office affects everyone -- married couples and single people alike. This means that employers need to help employees find the right balance that maximizes their productivity and enhances their quality of life.

Seem like a tall order? It very well may be for a growing number of todays small businesses. The Small Business Administration (SBA) reports that over 99 percent of businesses are small, meaning they are independently owned and operated with fewer than 500 employees. And, this group of businesses is getting hit very hard with unscheduled absenteeism.

According to the 2000 CCH Unscheduled Absence Survey, while the average rate of unscheduled absenteeism has dropped to 2.1 percent from 2.7 percent in 1999, the average cost of absenteeism remains high. The survey indicates that the cost of unscheduled absences per employee for small businesses ranges from $119 to $453, costing very small organizations $10,000 annually.

Whats interesting is that, at small companies, employees who call in sick do so more often because of work|life issues rather than personal illness. Given that personal issues account for the majority of employees missing work, small businesses need to offer programs that can help employees manage these issues. But, can they afford to? Or, can they afford not to?

Not all work|life benefits are costly,î says Molly Shonsey, senior vice president of Work|Life Benefits. They are variety of ways small businesses can help their employees, even if they have a limited budget.î

Shonsey points out that small businesses can use an abbreviated telephonic model as an inexpensive way to test work|life against a given workforce. If the majority of a companys employees have Internet access from work, there is also an abbreviated web product that costs even less.

For instance, by tapping into a web-based product such as Work|Life Benefits Work|Life Express, employees can readily access a wealth of work|life information, including:

• An online directory of services for the companys resource and referral program
• Educational resources for everything from pre-natal and infant care, to school age issues, adult and elder care, and financial and legal information
• Online search engine for child and elder care providers
• Research on work|life topics

These abbreviated models can be enhanced with optional products that are available in abbreviated form also, including financial and convenience services.