One "big company" benefit we offered to employees in a small lower Manhattan business is described in the latest issue of TGL:
Commuter benefits. Propose a commuter benefits program that allows employees to pay for public transit with pre-tax dollars. Some generous for-profit employers can even be persuaded to foot the transit bill and take the tax benefits themselves -- or split the costs and benefits with workers. Other good suggestions include parking cash-outs (where employees get payments in exchange for not using free company parking); carpooling incentives (such as reserved parking spots in the best locations); telecommuting; a guaranteed emergency ride home for transit, vanpool and carpool users; and bike racks and showers for bikers.In NYC, it is easy for businesses of any size to participate in the TransitChek program.
Selling points
* Benefits to the organization: greater employee satisfaction, safer commutes, less demand for company parking, eligibility for transit grants, less traffic congestion, points for good citizenship
* Benefits to the public: cleaner air, less global warming pollution, increased energy independence for the United States
Employees do love this. (Although it was curiously a bit of a hard sell, despite the fact that our employees were really smart, educated people. After nobody signed up, I created a presentation document that showed people the math on this, so that they could see how much money they would save each month.)
And guess what: your business also receives a tax benefit.
This is a win-win-win situation!
