How 3 Charities Handle Employee Benefits

American Cancer Society
Headquarters:

Atlanta
Fiscal 2000 income: $812-million
Full-time employees: 6,500

Medical, retirement, and other benefits: Pays 80 percent of health-insurance premiums for employees, their spouses, and children. Insurance includes

coverage for medical, dental, vision, and mental-health care, plus prescriptions. Provides short- and long-term disability coverage, a retirement plan, and life insurance. Offers flexible spending accounts, which allow workers to set aside part of their salaries tax-free to cover medical and dependent-care expenses. Offers an employee-assistance program, which provides access to counseling and other services.

Paid and unpaid leave: Gives employees 19 to 35 paid days off annually, depending on employees’ length of service. Covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act, which offers 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year to employees recovering from illness or caring for a newborn or adopted child, or an ailing parent, spouse, or child. Does not offer paid maternity leave beyond short-term disability coverage. Does not offer paid paternity leave.

Children of employees: Does not subsidize employees’ child-care or adoption expenses.

Employee schedules: Allows some employees to work flexible and part-time schedules, and telecommute, and lets all employees bring their children to work in emergencies. Does not allow employees to work compressed schedules — 35 hours a week or more in fewer than five days — or to share jobs with other employees.

Domestic partners: Considering plans to offer insurance coverage for opposite- and same-sex domestic partners.

Food for the Hungry
Headquarters:

Scottsdale, Ariz.
Fiscal 2000 income: $54.7-million
Full-time employees: 1,465

Medical, retirement, and other benefits: Pays 100 percent of health-insurance premiums for employees, none of the premiums for employees’ spouses and children. Insurance covers medical, dental, vision, and mental-health care, plus prescriptions. Provides short- and long-term disability coverage, a retirement plan, and life insurance. Offers medical and dependent-care flexible spending accounts. Does not offer an employee-assistance program.

Paid and unpaid leave: Offers 10 to 20 days of vacation, depending on employees’ length of service, and six sick days per year. Sick days cannot be used to care for family members. Covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act. Does not offer paid maternity leave beyond short-term disability coverage. Does not offer paid paternity leave.

Children of employees: Does not subsidize employees’ child-care or adoption expenses.

Employee schedules: Allows some employees to work flexible and part-time schedules, and to share jobs, and lets all employees bring their children to work in emergencies. Does not allow employees to work compressed schedules.

Domestic partners: Insurance does not cover opposite- or same-sex domestic partners.

Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan
Location:

Petoskey, Mich.
Fiscal 2000 income: $1.8-million
Full-time employees: 40

Medical, retirement, and other benefits: Pays 100 percent of health-insurance premiums to employees, but does not pay the premiums for employees’ spouses and children. Insurance includes medical and mental-health care, plus prescriptions. Does not cover dental or vision care. Offers medical and dependent-care flexible spending accounts, and a retirement plan. Does not provide short- or long-term disability coverage or life insurance. Does not offer an employee-assistance program.

Paid and unpaid leave: Offers 13 to 33 vacation and personal days, depending on employees’ length of service, and six sick days per year. Sick days can be used to care for family members. Not covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act. Does not offer paid maternity or paternity leave.

Children of employees: Offers 10-percent discount for employees whose children attend the day-care center the charity runs. Does not allow employees to bring their children to work in emergencies. Does not subsidize employees’ adoption expenses.

Employee schedules: Allows employees to work flexible, compressed, and part-time schedules, and to share jobs. Does not allow employees to telecommute.

Domestic partners: Insurance does not cover opposite- or same-sex domestic partners.