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Kansas City, Kan.-- Next Monday, February 29, 2016, is Leap Day, the quirky extra day in February that comes once every four years. To honor the occasion, Compdata looked at employer-offered benefits and how they have changed over the last four years. Analyzing data from Benefits USA 2011/2012 and Benefits USA 2015/2016, here are four notable shifts in benefits since our last leap year:

1.Employees are waiting less time for certain benefits. In 2011/2012, organizations reported an average wait time of 91.7 days before employees were eligible for vacation. In 2015/2016, employers reported a reduction in wait time for vacation eligibility, now an average of 84.4 days. Wait time for retirement plan eligibility decreased dramatically, from 130.9 days in 2011/2012 to 111.8 days in 2015/2016.

2.In 2015/2016, 37.5 percent of employers reported offering an HDHP medical plan, up 13.8 percentage points from 2011/2012. It is now the second most-offered medical plan by employers. It is also the medical plan with the largest shift over the past four years.

3.The most-offered medical plan by employers is a PPO plan, offered by 83.5 percent of employers in 2015/2016. The element of the plan with the most notable change from 2011/2012 is deductible level. For employee-only coverage, 27.0 percent of employers report a deductible level of $1000+, an increase of 66.7 percent from 2011/2012. For employee + family coverage, 33.4 percent of employers report a deductible level of $2000+, an increase of 53.9 percent from 2011/2012.

4.More employers are offering wellness options, and some increases are significant, including:
a. 62.8 percent more employers report offering Biometric Screening in 2015/2016 than did in 2011/2012.
b. 37.4 percent more employers report offering Medical Premium Contributions in 2015/2016 than did in 2011/2012.
c. 22.9 percent more employers report offering Physical Fitness Facility Access in 2015/2016 than did in 2011/2012.

"Most HR professionals are well-versed in looking at data year-to-year," said Amy Kaminski, Vice President, for Compdata Surveys & Consulting. "However, looking at long-term trends can sometimes give you a better pulse on whether or not your organization is ahead of the competition when it comes to offering competitive employment packages."


About the Survey
Benefits USA 2015/2016 provides national and regional data on medical, dental, vision and life insurance, as well as information covering pension plans, cost of benefits and more with an effective date of January 1, 2015. The 2015/2016 results feature data on nearly 3,800 company benefits plans covering more than 9 million incumbents across the country.

Since 1988, Compdata Surveys & Consulting has provided HR professionals with the compensation tools they need to stay competitive. With an extensive pay and benefits database and experienced compensation consultants, we are a full-service firm providing innovative solutions to complex compensation challenges. Thousands of organizations provide data in each of our 12 industry-specific surveys every year, ensuring the reliability of our results. For more information about the compensation and benefits surveys, contact KC Hall at (800) 300-9570.