The annual employee benefit fair took place May 9 in the Ritchie Center’s main concourse. Among the options this year are three new benefits designed to give employees greater peace of mind.
Identity theft assistance will provide credit monitoring and help employees report fraudulent activity on their credit cards to the three major credit bureaus. The program also will help restore good credit after any incidents of identity theft. This optional benefit is available at-cost — $56 annually.
The other benefits are free for employees, including a referral service for hearing care and a backup child- and elder-care program. All benefited employees will be automatically enrolled in the two free benefit programs.
Dick Gartrell, human resources director and chair of DU’s Child Care Task Force, which earlier this year recommended a number of tactics to improve work/life balance, says backup care was recognized as a “major need” by DU employees.
“I am very excited about this Work Options Program and what it provides to our employees,” says Gartrell. “I think it’s a very cost-effective plan that’s going to provide a tremendous new benefit.”
The Work Options program allows up to 100 hours of child or elder care when regular caregivers are unavailable. The co-pay is $2 per hour for care at a center or $4 per hour at home. The service includes care for healthy or mildly ill children and adults.
Gartrell says supervisors as well as employees with dependents will benefit from the program, which is designed to keep employees on the job. DU alumna Cindy Carrillo (BA ’79, MSW ’86) is a principal with Work Options Group, the company providing the backup care service.
Gartrell says that due to rising costs, employee benefits are growing more rapidly than wages and salaries at the University.
“I have to be much more aggressive in negotiating to get the best packages,” Gartrell says.