High salaries and free food aren't enough any more in Silicon Valley, where maturing companies are competing for talent with creative health care and "wellness" programs that use gadgets to promote good behavior.
Standard benefits at the largest technology companies, including Google and Apple, range from fertility treatments to deluxe on-site medical clinics, to new technology treats like health-tracking bracelets.
The health largesse separates Silicon Valley’s raging economy from many other sectors in the United States, but tech companies' experiments with perks show signs of spreading, benefits managers say.
Keeping employees healthy pays off in ways from increased productivity to lower health costs. Cutting obesity decreases risks of diabetes and other costly chronic diseases, for instance.
Silicon Valley employers see themselves fighting for good engineers.
Yahoo, for example, offers the Valley standard slew of fertility and other benefits as well as 16 weeks of paid leave for new mothers and eight weeks for new fathers.
Though young entrepreneurs still start businesses in garages, the tech sector's average age is in line with industry as a whole, according to benefits companies.
Benefits consultant Towers Watson found technology and telecoms firms will pay an average $10,450 U.S. per employee in 2014, close to the top of the range, based on a survey of expected expenses. Healthcare and energy both offer slightly more, while wholesale and retail employees will get $8,162 U.S.
Tech Insider
