CPAs Choose FLEX-TIME as #1 Work/Life Issue

by Patty Walsh, Chair, Work/Life Issues Committee

The NCACPA Work/Life Issues Committee conducted a survey over several months last year to determine which work/life benefits (i.e. child care, elder care, alternate work schedules, leave policies) were most important to NCACPA members. From that survey, the committee picked four companies that were identified by members as being employers who successfully deal with work/life issues. We interviewed those employers to see what the secret was for their success.

In general, the selected companies listened to their employees and tried to offer benefits that the employees deemed important. Sometimes the employees were part of a committee that identified needed benefits, and other times it was a management committee. In one instance, the employer actually used an outside company that surveyed the employees about the firm and its benefit packages.

Alternate work schedules was the number one issue identified in the survey by association members. Each of the companies we interviewed offered either part-time or flexible work schedules. Most of the firms didn’t seem to have any set flex-time policy, just a variety of situations in which flexible schedules were allowed. One company started using PDO’s (paid days off), with which a set number of days are given to employees to use as they’d like – vacation, sick leave, doctor appointments, school functions. This company also contracts with each employee for a set number of hours worked per year, and the employee distributes the hours as deemed necessary. It may be 50 hours one week and 30 the next. The employees use professional judgment as to when they can be absent, and management has not seen any problems with work getting accomplished.

Some of the companies track costs and usage of benefits. Obviously, the biggest challenge is to administer the plans and develop flexible and part-time work that will balance servicing clients and keeping employees happy. The committee discovered that employers who successfully deal with work/life issues achieve better employee retention, productivity, and customer service and reduced absenteeism.

A more detailed presentation will be offered by committee members in a panel discussion at the Practice Management (MAP) Conference on September 25^th from 8 AM until 9:30 AM at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville.

Finally, the committee would like to put this question to Interim Report readers: Isn’t it time to review and/or implement your work/life strategy?

Patty Walsh at (919) 871-6980 or via email: MEL1PCW@aol.com.