SHRM Poll: Employee Discount Programs

February 15, 2012

SHRM Poll: Employee Discount Programs ©SHRM 2012 2

Key Findings

How many organizations offer an employee discount program? More than one-half (58%) of organizations have an employee discount program. Larger organizations (those with 500 or more employees) are more likely to have an employee discount program than smaller organizations .

What kinds of goods and services are most commonly offered? The top five employee discounts offered are: computer hardware and software (57%), health/wellness services not covered by health insurance and/or organization’s wellness offerings (55%), goods and services at specific retail stores or retail sites (46%), entertainment (46%), and the organization’s own goods and services (43%).

Which employee discounts are the most popular? Nearly one-quarter (24%) of organizations reported that their own organization’s goods and services were most popular, followed by health/wellness services and entertainment (15% each). Computer hardware and software was the fourth most popular discount (10%).

Do employees value employee discounts? The majority (55%) of organizations reported that their employees either highly or somewhat value these discounts. More than one-quarter (27%) indicated that employees were neutral about employee discounts, and 18% reported little to no value for employee discounts.

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Does your organization have an employee discount program?

Yes; 58%

No; 42%

Note: n = 486. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from this analysis.

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Does your organization have an employee discount program?

Small organizations Large organizations Differences based on organization staff size

1 to 99 employees (19%)100 to 499 employees (55%)

500 to 2,499 employees (75%)2,500 to 24,999 employees (84%)25,000 or more employees (94%)

Larger organizations > smaller organizations

Comparisons by organization staff size

Larger organizations (more than 500 employees) are more likely than smaller organizations (1 to 499 employees) to have an employee discount program.

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In the past two years, has your organization’s employee discount program increased (e.g., in terms of the value, types and number of discounts offered)?

Yes; 51%No; 49%

Note: n = 218. Only respondents whose organizations had an employee discount program were asked this question. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from this analysis.

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On what kinds of goods and services does your organization offer employee discounts, and which is the most popular?

Other

Phone discounts

Services discounts such as cleaning, dry cleaning, etc.

Clothing

New auto sales or auto services

Travel

Other consumer electronics (other than computer hardware and software)

Restaurants

Your organization's own goods and services

Entertainment

Goods and services at specific retail stores or retail sites

Health/wellness services not covered by health insurance and/or organization's wellness offerings (e.g., fitness classes)

Computer hardware and software

9%

0%

1%

0%

6%

4%

5%

4%

24%

15%

7%

15%

10%

10%

6%

19%

23%

29%

33%

34%

35%

43%

46%

46%

55%

57%

Offered (n = 269)

Most Popular (n = 220)

Note: Percentages for “offered” category do not total 100% due to multiple response options. Only respondents whose organizations had an employee discount program were asked these questions. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from this analysis.

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Does your organization use a third-party administrator to manage employee discounts?

Yes; 21%

No; 79%

Note: n = 242. Only respondents whose organizations had an employee discount program were asked this question. Respondents who answered “don’t know” were excluded from this analysis.

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How does your organization communicate employee discounts to staff?

Other

Flyers, brochures, memos

Employee handbook, policy manual or orientation

Distribution of coupons

Via e-mail to staff

Through the organization's intranet

10%

8%

12%

18%

52%

67%

Note: n = 268. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options. Only respondents whose organizations had an employee discount program were asked this question.

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How does your organization communicate employee discounts to staff?

Small organizations Large organizations Differences based on organization staff size

1 to 99 employees (45%)100 to 499 employees (54%)500 to 2,499 employees (67%)

25,000 or more employees (94%) Larger organizations > smaller organizations

Comparisons by organization staff size

Larger organizations (25,000 or more employees) are more likely to communicate employee discounts to staff through the organization’s intranet than smaller organizations (1 to 2,499 employees).

Publicly owned for-profit organizations

Privately owned for-profit organizations

Nonprofit organizations

Differences based on organization sector

85% 61% 61%Publicly owned for-profit >

Privately owned for-profit and nonprofit

Publicly owned for-profit organizations are more likely to communicate employee discounts to staff through the organization’s intranet than privately owned for-profit and nonprofit organizations.

Comparisons by organization sector

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How much do employees value discounts as part of their benefits package?

No value

Little value

Neutral

Somewhat value

Highly value

3%

15%

27%

39%

16%

Note: n = 268. Only respondents whose organizations had an employee discount program were asked this question.

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Do you know what percentage of your organization’s employees used at least one employee discount in 2010?

Yes; 20%

No; 80%

Note: n= 267. Only respondents whose organizations had an employee discount program were asked this question.

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Percentage of organization's employees that used at least one employee discount in 2010

76% to 100% of employees

51% to 75% of employees

26% to 50% of employees

1% to 25% of employees

23%

17%

28%

32%

Note: n = 53. Only respondents who knew what percentage of employees used their organization’s discount program were asked this question.

SHRM Poll: Employee Discount Programs ©SHRM 2012

Demographics: Organization Industry

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Manufacturing 20%Health care and social assistance 15%Professional, scientific and technical services 13%Finance and insurance 8%Retail trade 7%Educational services 6%Transportation and warehousing 5%Accommodation and food services 4%Information, publishing industries 4%Public administration 4%Wholesale trade 4%Utilities 3%Arts, entertainment and recreation 3%Real estate and rental and leasing 2%Religious, grant-making, civic, professional and similar organizations 2%Management of companies and enterprises 2%Construction of buildings, heavy and civil engineering construction, specialty trade contractors 2%Administrative and support and waste management and remediation services 1%Mining 1%Repair and maintenance 1%Private households 0%Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting 0%Personal and laundry services 0%Other services except public administration 9%

Note: n = 446. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.

SHRM Poll: Employee Discount Programs ©SHRM 2012

Demographics: Organization Sector

Other

Government sector

Nonprofit organization

Privately owned for-profit organization

Publicly owned for-profit organization

4%

5%

20%

53%

18%

14

n = 443

SHRM Poll: Employee Discount Programs ©SHRM 2012

Demographics: Organization Staff Size

24%

30%

22%

16%

8%

15

n = 444

SHRM Poll: Employee Discount Programs ©SHRM 2012

Demographics: Other

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U.S.-based operations only 73%

Multinational operations 27%

Single-unit company: A company in which the location and the company are one and the same.

30%

Multi-unit company: A company that has more than one location. 70%

Multi-unit headquarters determines HR policies and practices 51%

Each work location determines HR policies and practices 4%

A combination of both the work location and the multi-unit headquarters determine HR policies and practices

45%

Is your organization a single-unit company or a multi-unit company?

Are HR policies and practices determined by the multi-unit corporate headquarters, by each work location or both?

Does your organization have U.S.-based operations (business units) only or does it operate multi-nationally?

n = 467 n = 470

n = 335

Corporate (company wide) 68%

Business unit/division 14%

Facility/location 18%

n = 336

What is the HR department/function for which you responded throughout this survey?

SHRM Poll: Employee Discount Programs ©SHRM 2012

SHRM Poll: Employee Discount Programs

Response rate = 18%

Sample composed of 501 randomly selected HR professionals from SHRM’s membership

Margin of error +/- 4%

Survey fielded September 28-October 12, 2011

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Methodology

For more poll findings, visit www.shrm.org/surveys

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