kfergos
03-05-2009, 10:02 AM
I'm going to vent for a minute.
<vent>
A coworker and I got together and contacted our HR rep about implementing the $20/month bike commuter incentive thing that's gotten so much press. It seems so great -- the company (a) gets a tax write-off; (b) offers another benefit at extremely low cost; (c) looks "green" by supporting alternative commuting. But here's what my cheap-o company decided:
[Outside Contractor Company Name] administers our flexible spending accounts and has proposed the commuter benefit to us in the past. At the moment, we do not plan on rolling out additional benefits that incur a cost to the Company. Being a tax qualified plan we would need an outside administrator to administer the plan. There are fees associated with the implementation and roll out, as well as the on going administration of a plan such as this. We will ask [Outside Contractor] or other FSA plan administrator to include a proposal to include this feature when we revisit all of our benefit offerings in the fall. Please feel free to pass this information along to employees who inquire.(Emphasis mine.) So basically, it might cost a pittance to tell the people about it, and that's why they're not doing it?!! :mad: I don't know enough about the mechanics of offering this kind of benefit or actually implementing the bailout plan, but I'm so frustrated I could spit. They just don't get it, and I don't really have any recourse -- they've "considered" it (although I'm very doubtful about what they actually did; my HR person declined to meet with me to actually talk about it, and told me that she'd "do some research." Why not let me present the results of my research rather than wasting time doing something I've already done?) and that's that. GRRRRRRR.
</vent>
...besides, I could really use that $20 extra every month. :p
<vent>
A coworker and I got together and contacted our HR rep about implementing the $20/month bike commuter incentive thing that's gotten so much press. It seems so great -- the company (a) gets a tax write-off; (b) offers another benefit at extremely low cost; (c) looks "green" by supporting alternative commuting. But here's what my cheap-o company decided:
[Outside Contractor Company Name] administers our flexible spending accounts and has proposed the commuter benefit to us in the past. At the moment, we do not plan on rolling out additional benefits that incur a cost to the Company. Being a tax qualified plan we would need an outside administrator to administer the plan. There are fees associated with the implementation and roll out, as well as the on going administration of a plan such as this. We will ask [Outside Contractor] or other FSA plan administrator to include a proposal to include this feature when we revisit all of our benefit offerings in the fall. Please feel free to pass this information along to employees who inquire.(Emphasis mine.) So basically, it might cost a pittance to tell the people about it, and that's why they're not doing it?!! :mad: I don't know enough about the mechanics of offering this kind of benefit or actually implementing the bailout plan, but I'm so frustrated I could spit. They just don't get it, and I don't really have any recourse -- they've "considered" it (although I'm very doubtful about what they actually did; my HR person declined to meet with me to actually talk about it, and told me that she'd "do some research." Why not let me present the results of my research rather than wasting time doing something I've already done?) and that's that. GRRRRRRR.
</vent>
...besides, I could really use that $20 extra every month. :p