Employee Benefits Services

Managing human resources (HR) tasks, offering competitive benefits, administering payroll, and maintaining compliance are essential HR functions. However, spending time on these time-consuming activities can take away from focusing on actual business growth.

Research conducted by Paychex found that managing HR administrative duties, such as employee benefits, payroll processing, and safety program implementation takes up a lot of time. Almost 7 in 10 business leaders reported spending more than one week per month on HR tasks and duties.¹ What is this time costing your business?

Help Business Owners Focus on Growth vs. HR Administrative Tasks

Businesses across the U.S. may enjoy wide-ranging benefits by choosing a professional employer organization (PEO). It could help you retain employees, offer better benefits that employees value, and have a long-term and profitable business — benefits that are worth considering.

Working with a PEO could be a great business strategy to attain higher return on investment (ROI) in multiple areas of the business. A PEO is a popular way to outsource HR functions such as payroll, employee benefits, and workers' compensation administration, allowing business owners to focus more on running their companies.

While the tasks can vary, common options in a PEO may include:

• HR administrative support
• Benefits administration and enrollment
• Payroll administration and taxes
• Compliance assistance
• Workplace safety
• Talent management
• Technology

Research from Paychex found 51% of leaders said the No. 1 benefit of outsourcing HR administration was having fewer mistakes.¹ Participants also reported outsourcing HR helped increase productivity, provided better analytics and reporting, improved regulatory compliance, and reduced costs.

Improve Employee Turnover and Retention

In today's increasingly competitive work environment, keeping employees and reducing turnover are key areas of concern. Research from Paychex found business leaders ranked hiring and keeping good employees (46%) as their top operational challenge.¹ It’s time-consuming and expensive to recruit and train new staff; while positions are unfilled, there's extra stress on existing staff or important work goes undone.

Turnover can have even deeper consequences for businesses, including:

• Damaging their brand in the market
• Negatively affecting employee morale
• Decreasing the quality of candidates that companies can attract

With so much at stake to hire and retain great employees, many businesses are doing everything they can to deliver attractive and competitive compensation and benefits packages — not only traditional offerings (explained below), but also value-added ancillary benefits such as employee assistance programs, ID theft protection, financial counseling, healthy lifestyle programs, and supplemental insurance packages.

Looking ahead to the next 12 months, offering competitive compensation and benefits (42%) was reported as an HR-related issue that is likely to become more challenging, followed by attracting dedicated and capable staff (39%), and minimizing employee turnover (36%).¹

One advantage of a PEO is that it can be a secret weapon in finding and keeping your company's valuable talent when you can offer more competitive benefits and efficient service. Findings from the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (NAPEO) showed that small businesses in a PEO had turnover rates between 10 and 14 percentage points lower than average, depending upon the industry. Better employee service and more comprehensive attention to the employee experience are contributing factors.

Negotiate Competitive Benefits

As noted above, offering competitive benefits remains a pressing issue. A key benefit of a PEO is that it's often well-positioned to negotiate attractive insurance rates and benefits for its members. In instances where a company might only be able to offer its workers a bare-bones health insurance plan, a PEO may be able to provide a choice of generous coverage options for medical, dental, and vision care, as well as life, disability, and workers' compensation coverage. Employees may also gain access to a 401(k) savings plan and consumer-directed health plans such as flexible spending accounts and health savings accounts.

With a PEO, employees don't have to obtain health insurance through a government marketplace (which only offers medical and stand-alone dental benefits). Employees may have access to more plan designs at competitive prices, as well as one-stop shopping for most benefit needs.

Stay on Top of Changing Workplace Regulations

How can a small business hope to focus on sales and growth when it must also keep pace with today's changing regulatory environment? Among the many benefits, a PEO helps businesses monitor and adapt to changes involving local, state, federal regulations, healthcare reform, COBRA, and minimum wage requirements, as well as state unemployment insurance. This can help relieve a significant time and resources burden.

Employee Relations Support

PEOs can assist with employee relations issues such as:

• Hiring and firing
• Job descriptions
• Onboarding
• Training and development
• Employee handbooks
• Worker retention tools
• Staffing strategies
• Performance management

Every business should have a thorough, up-to-date, and clearly written employee handbook to help engage and communicate to employees and protect the company. A PEO often provides a customizable employee handbook, and they may be able to provide you with access to an integrated HR management system that enables employees to access information about benefits and company policies around-the-clock.

Potential Disadvantages of Using a PEO

When evaluating whether a PEO is right for your business, it's important to examine potential risks or disadvantages of a PEO, depending on the PEO and terms of the service agreement. Here are factors to consider:

• PEO fees: If your business experiences rapid growth (thus causing a need to quickly hire a whole new crop of employees), the fees charged by a PEO can increase as well.
• The financial health of your business: Any quality PEO will likely vet your business operations and finances prior to entering into this relationship. These organizations prefer working with businesses in good financial shape, without any pending litigation against them or allegations of misconduct or wrongdoing.

Ultimately, it's critical to consider both the pros and possible cons of PEOs. This includes carefully assessing PEO risks and weighing them against potential PEO benefits that may help meet your business needs.

PEOs and Your Business

Working with a PEO is increasing in popularity as U.S. employers seek to emphasize core functions and increase efficiencies. In fact, 98% of PEO clients said they would recommend a PEO to a small business colleague.² Whether you're an HR professional looking to streamline administrative tasks so you can focus on more strategic work, or a business owner needing more comprehensive HR management services, PEOs can provide a unique combination of powerful HR technology and expert support to help you achieve your goals.

¹ 2023 Priorities for Business Leaders, Paychex

² NAPEO Market Research Tracking Survey Report from December 2021

Over half of U.S. states have enacted legislation requiring private-sector businesses of a certain size to participate in a state-facilitated IRA program if they don’t currently offer an employee retirement plan. Businesses that don’t comply could potentially incur state penalties. Employers can choose a retirement plan from a non-government provider as long as it meets state requirements.

Across America, many states are experiencing a retirement savings crisis. For example, in Connecticut, 600,000 working people still have no access to retirement plans. In New York State, that number is in the millions. The Federal Reserve reports that roughly a quarter of non-retired adults have no retirement savings.

To deal with this crisis, 14 states and two cities have enacted legislation and five have been fully implemented programs. Of the enacted states, almost all are mandatory except for Massachusetts, which has proposed legislation to make it mandatory for for-profit businesses, as well as New Mexico, Vermont, and Washington.

Enacted: Maryland, Colorado, Connecticut, New York state, New Jersey, Virginia, Maine, Vermont, and New Mexico, and the city of Seattle, WA.

Fully implemented and active—California, Illinois, Massachusetts (for non-profits), Oregon, and Washington

Check the status of your state at our online resource center. 

State Retirement Programs, at a Glance

If your business already offers a workplace retirement plan, you may register for an exemption from the state retirement program. If you have a business without a retirement plan, however, you might need to comply with the state’s (and/or the state where your employees work) program requirements or risk potential penalties. While every state is different, most state-facilitated retirement programs:

• Are designed as Roth individual retirement accounts (IRAs)
• May be mandated for businesses employing a certain number of employees
• Use investment firms and investments chosen by the state
• May require employers to automatically enroll employees at a contribution of three to five percent of each employee’s payroll wages
• Allow workers to opt out of contributing via payroll deduction
• May require employers to do some administration

Also noteworthy is that a business located in a state without a mandate to offer a workplace retirement plan might still have obligations regarding a workplace retirement program if they have employees working and reporting income in a state that has such a mandate. For example, Wisconsin does not have a state retirement savings program mandate, but the state of Illinois does have a mandate. A business located in Wisconsin that also has the requisite number of employees working and reporting income in Illinois would be required to register for the Illinois Secure Choice Savings program for those employees or offer a private retirement plan for them that satisfies the mandate. If it is the latter, the employer would have to file for an exemption with the state of Illinois and demonstrate proof of their private retirement plan.  

Another thing to consider is that unlike 401(k) plans, state-facilitated IRAs are not eligible for up to $16,500 in SECURE¹ Act tax credits. Their contribution limits are not as high as 401(k)s. Many state programs also require the employer to do their own plan administration—filing, reporting, adjusting contributions limits, and more. This can be burdensome to smaller businesses that don’t have the time or staff to do complex plan management.

Update on the States

Here is a brief update on the enacted state-facilitated retirement programs as of November 2022.

California

The CalSavers program offers a traditional IRA in addition to a Roth IRA, and has oversight from a public board of directors. Recent legislation expands the program to almost all employers with at least one employee (sole proprietors are excluded). Employers must register for the program by Dec. 31, 2025 or offer a private plan that meets the state mandate. CalSavers has begun to notify businesses about penalties for noncompliant employers.

Colorado

The Colorado Secure Savings Program requires businesses with five or more employees to offer a workplace retirement program. The state implemented its program and employers can begin registering. There are phased-in deadlines in 2023 for different business sizes. 

Connecticut

Connecticut launched the MyCTSavings retirement savings program in early 2022 and established deadlines for businesses to register their employees. The deadline for businesses with 26-plus employees has passed. Businesses with 5 to 25 employees must register by Oct. 31, 2023. This program requires businesses with five or more employees and no retirement plan to participate in a state-facilitated IRA program. Noncompliant employers may be subject to civil action and court fees if they fail to enroll an employee in a timely fashion.

Delaware

The state has a proposed launch of Jan. 1, 2025 for Delaware EARNS (Expanding Access for Retirement and Necessary Savings), a mandatory state-facilitated retirement savings program (Roth IRA). Businesses with five (5) or more employees that have been in operation for at least six months must register for the state program if they already do not have an auto-IRA plan for all employees or sponsor a qualified retirement savings plan. Any employee 18 years of age or older who receives wages in Delaware qualifies to participate and there is an employee opt-out option. Contribution amount per pay period will be 3 percent to 6 percent. There is an annual auto-escalation of 1% or 2% with a maximum of 15%. Any business failing to comply will face a penalty of $250 per employee per year, up to a maximum of $5,000 per year.

Hawaii

The state has created the Hawaii Retirement Savings Program, a mandatory state-facilitated Roth IRA program that every business in operation for at least two years with at least one (1) employee must participate in, if they have not maintained a qualified retirement plan within the past two years. The state has not set a launch date yet but certain parameters do exist, including an employer requirement to notify employees of the opt-in and the employee's option to opt out. Presently, the contribution amount default will be 5% per pay period, but this is flexible.

There will be penalties for failure to provide written notification to employees of the opt-in, as well as financial stakes that include making up missed contribution amounts in the amount each covered employee would have contributed (plus 6% interest rate). In addition, there will be a penalty of $25 for each month the covered employee was not enrolled in the program and $50 for each month they continue to be not enrolled after the date the original penalty is assessed.

Illinois

The Illinois Secure Choice Retirement Program is a mandatory state-facilitated Roth IRA savings program that plans to send enforcement notices to noncompliant employers starting in 2022. Employers that do not comply may face penalties of $250 per employee for the first year, and $500 per employee for each subsequent year depending on business size. One more wave of implementation is also planned: employers with 5-15 employees must register by November 2023.

Maine

Tentatively scheduled for April 1, 2023, employers with 5 or more employees who have been in operation for at least two years and have no retirement plan. They may be required to participate in the Maine Retirement Savings Program unless they register for exemption. The registration plans to be implemented in three phases, starting with a proposed deadline of April 2023 for businesses with 25 or more employees, followed by October 2023 (15-24 EEs), and April 2024 (5-14 EEs). The program will be auto-enroll with an opt-out option, plus there will be a 5% default contribution limit (flexible) that includes an auto-increase of 1% annually, up to 8%. Self-employed and individual contractors are expected to participate.

Maryland

The MarylandSaves program requires businesses of all sizes to offer employees automatic enrollment in a payroll-deduction IRA. The MarylandSaves program launched in September 2022.

Massachusetts

Massachusetts legislation differs from other states in that it applies only to the non-profit sector. The Massachusetts CORE Plan is voluntary and allows non-profit organizations with 20 or fewer employees to participate in the 401(k) multiple employer plan (MEP) administered by the state. Participants must have payroll administered by an eligible third party.

New Jersey

The New Jersey Secure Choice Savings Program requires employers with 25 or more employees who have been in business for at least two years to offer a retirement plan (Roth IRA, with a traditional IRA as an alternative election). Smaller or newer employers can join voluntarily.

New Mexico

In July 2024, New Mexico is planning to launch a voluntary program that offers a Hybrid Roth IRA or Marketplace plan. The program will have auto-enrollment and give employees the choice of opting out. Since the program is voluntary, there will be no penalties imposed for non-compliance.

New York

The New York State Secure Choice Savings Program was originally voluntary, but legislation has been passed to mandate participation in the program for businesses with 10 or more employees. Eligible employers had to have been in business for at least two years and without a qualified retirement plan for the two years prior.

Oregon

The OregonSaves program has made great strides in helping private-sector workers who don’t have access to workplace retirement plans. Employers are currently required to automatically enroll employees in the IRA savings program if they do not offer their employees a retirement savings plan. Businesses with 3-4 employees are expected to register for the program by March 1, 2023 while businesses with 1-2 employees have a July 31, 2023 deadline to register. The employer penalty for non-compliance is $100 an employee, up to $5,000 a year.

Vermont

The state began planning to implement the Green Mountain Secure Retirement Plan in 2017, a voluntary multiple employer plan (MEP) designed for employers with 50 or fewer employees. Self-employed business owners can also participate. The program is scheduled to launch in December 2022. Employees will be automatically enrolled but have the ability to opt out. Employers also have the option of matching contributions.

Virginia

Tentatively scheduled to launch its pilot in March 2023 with a possible program launch on July 1, 2023, RetirePath Virginia requires employers with 25 or more employees to participate if they have been in business at least two years and don’t offer an employee retirement plan. The goal is to offer nearly 800,000 private-sector employees a chance to start saving for retirement.

Washington State

About 131,000 Washington State businesses don’t offer workplace retirement plans. That translates to roughly 2 million employees with no retirement savings. In response to this crisis, the state has established its Retirement Small Business Marketplace to help small companies adopt retirement savings programs for their workforces. Participating financial service providers offer low-cost plans to employers with 100 or fewer employees, including sole proprietors and the self-employed.

The marketplace currently offers SIMPLE, Roth, traditional IRAs, and 401(k) plans to choose from, based on the type of business and the individual’s financial planning goals.

Regardless of Your State, You Do Have Choices

Some of the state retirement savings programs may be “mandatory”, but employers have the option to adopt a qualified retirement plan that exempts them from participating in the state program. In some cases, a state-run IRA may not be the best fit for your business. For example, you may prefer a traditional 401(k) plan that has higher contribution limits for employees. Or you may prefer a plan that requires less time, staff, and cost to manage, like the Pooled Employer Plan (PEP). It all depends on your business needs and the savings goals of your employees. When in doubt—be sure to compare your options.

¹Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement. Under the SECURE Act, eligible new plans can potentially get up to $5,000 per year for three years in new plan tax credits with an additional $500 per year with auto-enrollment.

Stress, both in and out of the workplace, is a fact of life for many employees and business owners. In fact, more than one in four business and HR leaders (26%) said they are extremely or very stressed, and this increased to 35% of leaders feeling stressed at companies with 250 to 500 employees.¹

There are things you can do to help alleviate some of the burdens of competing priorities and other stressors. In the long run, providing employee resources can go a long way in demonstrating how much you value your workforce.

An EAP, which stands for employee assistance program, is one example of how you can help employees resolve a variety of issues that contribute to stress, which in turn may be adversely affecting their work performance and morale. EAPs may help improve engagement and productivity, and even reduce absenteeism and turnover. Here's a closer look at why you may want to consider an EAP as part of your benefits lineup.

What Is an EAP?

An EAP provides a confidential source that employees can use to find support and resources for certain challenges they face. The service is usually provided as part of a larger benefits package and connects employees to assessments, short-term counseling, referrals, and follow-up services. Depending on the situation, employees can access certain services from the safety and privacy of their own home.

What Does an Employee Assistance Program Do & Why Is It Important?

Employee assistance programs are designed to connect employees with the best resources for handling personal challenges that can impact their ability to manage stress and remain productive while at work. EAPs can suggest resources that help with many needs from mental health counseling to personal service discounts on babysitting or insurance.

EAPs have trained representatives that can evaluate the needs of the employee and connect them to the best resource to help with that need. Whether it's recommending a counselor or providing a list of local photographers to lessen the stress of planning an upcoming wedding, the representatives that work with EAPs can quickly and efficiently go to work for your employees.

What Does EAP Coverage Include?

While the details of an individual program are identified in the plan documents, many EAPs provide critical support for serious issues. Some of the issues and services often included in an EAP are (but aren't limited to):

• Mental health programs: Anxiety, depression, grief, crisis intervention, and behavioral health issues such as addiction or eating disorders are some examples of issues supported through these programs.
• Health and caregiving: In addition to managing their own health (e.g. establishing a fitness plan, getting nutrition guidance, or coping with chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, or hypertension), employees may be faced with additional challenges like being the caregiver for a loved one. Through an EAP, employees can get help locating eldercare or daycare services, nursing homes, or even tracking down an in-network physician for a child going to school out-of-state.
• Family services: All families can benefit from support in one way or another. Help is available with EAP marriage counseling services, family planning, child safety, physical or emotional abuse, and mediation.
• Counseling referrals: One of the overarching benefits of an employee assistance program is having readily available, confidential support from qualified professionals for personal, family, and work-related issues. Counseling services can include assessments, remote short-term support, or referrals.
• Substance abuse: Chemical dependency, addiction, alcoholism, gambling, and crisis intervention are a few examples where support from a qualified professional through the EAP can make a positive and potentially life-saving impact in an employee's life.
• Financial services: EAP services can connect employees with help to improve financial wellness — budgeting advice, achieving healthy spending habits, loan consolidation, debt repayment, setting up an emergency fund, and more.
• Work issues: Navigating a career change, establishing a plan for professional development, managing workplace stress and responsibilities, making travel plans, or managing relationships with coworkers are all examples of how an EAP can help employees with work-related issues and help prevent or overcome burnout.

How Does an Employee Assistance Program Work?

The specific offerings of an EAP vary depending on the plan documents of the program. However, an EAP typically covers your employees and could also cover eligible household members, including a spouse, domestic partner, children, or other dependents. EAPs often maintain a network of partners who can help meet a range of needs, such as legal firms, childcare professionals, elder care specialists, nutritionists, fitness experts, and more. With an EAP, your employees and their qualified household members have access to a confidential resource they can call when crises or general life management questions arise.

The range of services may vary from on-call counselors and referrals to local resources that can help them solve their challenges. Members can also access a virtual library of free resources and online self-help tools. Access to care counselors is available 24/7, and all communications are personal and confidential.

An EAP is not health insurance. However, a combination of a health insurance plan and an EAP could be useful to your organization and appreciated by employees.

Benefits of an EAP

When life's challenges outpace your employees' ability to cope, it can negatively impact both their performance and productivity. Having adequate support can help employees manage stress and solve problems, which may reduce the negative impact on the company's bottom line and overall morale.

Stress Management

Employees nationwide are currently dealing with stress: whether it's the ongoing impact of the pandemic, working at home and contending with work/life balance, are dealing with health issues, need to take care of kids, or are working long hours. In the 2022 Paychex Pulse of HR Survey, 60% of HR leaders said they were concerned about employee burnout, an 18% increase from before the pandemic. Your staff can leverage an employee assistance program to support employees in keeping stress levels under control, even during these challenging times.

Decreased Absenteeism

Absenteeism and stress are closely related. When you layer this on top of the numerous issues that may already be keeping employees from work — being caregivers or getting sick themselves — absenteeism can become a serious issue. An EAP can help an employee find the resources that can help save them time and mitigate unhealthy stress levels. Having these tools on hand can have positive impacts, such as improved time management and more energy throughout the workday.

Reduced Accidents and Fewer Workers' Comp Claims

When employees have readily available access to resources that improve their health, manage their problems, and reduce stress, their overall wellness can improve. Stress management can help employees be more productive, as well as work smarter and safer, especially those who are involved in various forms of physical labor. Investing in an EAP may likely reduce accidents and could ultimately lower your workers' compensation claims.

Affordable Resources

For many employers, providing healthcare coverage is one of the more costly components of a benefits package. A healthcare assistance service like an EAP can help manage that cost over the long-term by helping provide the advice, support, and resources employees need to be physically and mentally healthier, thus lowering their health care claims over the long-term. Additionally, an EAP can help employees be more efficient in managing their healthcare expenses.

Greater Employee Retention

Employees who are engaged and satisfied with their work tend to stick around longer. Not only can access to an EAP empower employees to lead healthier, more fulfilling lives but offering an EAP as a benefit demonstrates that you care about their overall well-being, which can increase feelings of loyalty to your organization. Roughly half of companies with 10 to 500 employees expect that hiring quality staff will be more challenging in the next 12 months.¹ Offering benefits like an EAP can really set your company apart.

Likewise, feeling stressed or overworked, an inability to achieve sufficient work/life balance, and not having access to resources are some of the reasons why employees choose to leave a job. An EAP, with its network of resources, functions to help employees better manage feelings and situations. When you consider the true cost of losing an employee (impact on morale, productivity loss, cost of recruiting, hiring, and onboarding a new person), investing in an EAP to help support your retention efforts makes a lot of sense.

Other EAP Benefits to Employers

There are additional benefits of an employee assistance program for employers. In certain cases, EAPs can directly help a company resolve ongoing issues. Each program's offerings are different, but certain programs will provide consultations to managers or executives on how to handle difficult situations within the workplace. For example, an EAP can be used as a resource during employer/employee interactions. If a worker is experiencing performance issues or discloses personal problems to an employer, a referral to an EAP resource may be appropriate. However, it's important to evaluate this from a policy standpoint and obtain expert HR or legal advice to ensure the strategy you're considering complies with relevant state and federal regulations.

An EAP can also help a business meet employees' needs while staying within its budget. Many employees and potential job candidates want a variety of benefits, and an EAP is one way a smaller organization can remain competitive for top talent and retain valued staff once hired. It may be a good time to audit your employee benefits package to determine whether an EAP would benefit your organization.

How Much Does an Employee Assistance Program Cost?

When added to a larger employee benefits package, EAPs can come at a very reasonable cost to employers. While the exact figure will vary across providers and service offerings, many EAP add-ons cost between 75 cents and $2 per member per month, according to the Society for Human Resource Management.

The exact costs will vary based on:

• The number of employees covered
• The number of services offered
• Frequency of use
• Chosen EAP provider

What Are the Steps for Launching a Successful EAP?

The most important step for launching a successful employee assistance program is identifying which services are needed by your employees. To that end, employers looking to add an EAP to their existing benefits package should take the following steps.

1. Gather Employee Feedback

Your employees may be willing to share what they need most, especially if they understand that the information is to be used to help you improve company benefits offerings.

2. Explore Provider Offerings

There are numerous EAP providers, each with their own unique plans and offering sets. By comparing several providers, you can start to narrow the field and identify which providers align with the services and benefits sought by your employees.

3. Compare the Numbers

Each plan will have its own limitations on number of covered employees, number of services offered, and how often employees can access the service. By comparing these figures, you can calculate a rough annual cost to your organization.

4. Integration With Your Existing Benefits Plan

Once you have chosen a plan, work with your EAP provider to seamlessly integrate this service into your existing benefits package.

How To Adopt an EAP at Your Business

Challenging situations, from stress on the job to navigating an emergency, can take a toll on individuals. Help your staff get the support they need by investing in an employee assistance program. Ready to get started? An EAP is included as part of all Paychex HR Services offerings, and clients can get started by contacting their dedicated HR professional. If you're evaluating your benefits plan on a broader scale or looking to switch providers, consider how Paychex can help you attract and keep an engaged and productive workforce.

Learn how a mentally healthy workplace is good for business and take steps today to improve the mental health of your employees. For additional resources, check out our mental health resource page.

¹2023 Priorities for Business Leaders, Paychex