Health benefits concern the physical well being of employees and their families. Broadly speaking, this could include such things as medical coverage, dental and vision insurance, prescription drug plans, certain types of disability coverage, and counseling services, often called employee personal assistance programs (EAP). You might also have a flexible spending account, which allows you to pay for certain medical and dependent care expenses out of pretax dollars.Dental plansDental plans come in almost as many forms as regular healthcare coverage. Basic dental coverage usually has categories ... view article details

Some gentlemen prefer blondes. Some ladies will only date men of a certain height.The laws of attraction differ from person to person, but Salary.com recently surveyed readers to find out if the size of a person's paycheck is a determining factor when men and women are looking for romantic partners.We surveyed nearly 2,000 people regarding the role money plays in romantic relationships, and discovered some revealing information about how men and women view money and attraction.Money Matters More to Women When asked if the number of zeros in your significant other's paycheck mattered, ... view article details

There is always a temptation to over spend during the holidays. In light of the current economic situation it is more important than ever to avoid getting deeper in to debt in order to satisfy gift-giving obligations. Don't despair. Salary.com has put together a few ideas to help you shift your focus and have a happy holiday season.Develop a plan Decide ahead of time how much you can afford to spend and on whom you plan to spend it. By looking at your entire planned gift giving at once, you'll make better decisions once you get into the thick of holiday shopping. Once y... view article details

There was a great episode of Cheers long ago where the dim-witted Woody was duped into accepting the higher title of “Senior Bartender” over a pay raise. (For those under 30, Cheers was a sitcom in the 80s and Woody was played by Woody Harrelson … you know… that guy from True Detective and Hunger Games).Maybe it’s because I somehow saw my future-self helping others negotiate, but even at the young age of 19, that scene really struck with me. After all, who could possibly want something as insignificant as a higher title, when the bottom line of money is what they were clearly looking for?Well,... view article details

Which Coworkers are the Most Annoying? Coworkers. Good ones can be the reason you stay at a job, while horrible colleagues can make every day in the office a living hell from which you’d like nothing more than to escape.If you’ve spent a few years in the ranks of the working class, you’ve no doubt experienced a cornucopia of annoying coworkers. But have you ever wondered which ones are the worst of the bunch? We did, and so I drew on my own experiences and polled other Salary.com workers to come up with the nine most annoying types of coworkers on the planet.See if you recognize anyon... view article details

Feeling at Ease with Negotiating Here’s a test. Over the past year, what has been the typical response when you ask people “How’ve you been?” My guess is that very few answer, “Actually, I’ve been incredibly relaxed, calm, and productive.” Most likely they say, “I’m so busy!” “Things have been so crazy!” “I’m so swamped at work!” “I’m exhausted and busy and crazy!” I could go on.So when the end of the year rolls around, it seems that is the time that people finally set aside time to be with family, unplug from the working world, relax and recover. But what if you could feel more relax... view article details

What is the PSR? The PSR is our Personal Salary Report. You probably know about and have used our free Salary Wizard, but the PSR is an enhanced compensation analysis that costs a little bit of money, but gives you much more of an edge when it comes to negotiating salary.So why should you buy the PSR when you can get free information in the Salary Wizard? Glad you asked, because here's our step-by-step guide to understanding the PSR.For Starters... The very first thing you'll do is enter your job title, state, and city. This is important because the region in which you live h... view article details

Real-life Leaders, Their Shortcomings, and How They Overcame Them "A business owner has to realize that, as the saying goes, 'A skunk stinks from the head down,' and a business does too," writes Bill McBean in his book The Facts of Business Life. That’s why, McBean posits, behind every great leader is a successful business. But just because you’re sitting in the leader’s chair doesn’t mean you excel at managing and motivating a team. Plenty of highly-placed executives lack essential people skills, or worse, rule with a bully’s iron fist -- it’s their way or the highway, a la TV bosses Donald T... view article details

Summer Presents Unique Opportunities for You to Advance Your Career Summer is No Time to Slack Off at Work And suddenly, Summer. Coats go into storage, you’re buying sunscreen by the gallon, and your mind instantly shifts from spreadsheets and status meetings to suntans and sandy beaches. However, while kids might be screaming "school's out for summer" and racing for the playground, things don't quite work that way as an adult in the business world. But don't worry, the tips below won't be as painful as summer school. So here are 5 ways you can use summer to your advantage professionally. ... view article details

You've Graduated! (So Now What?) Congratulations. After four years of classes, midterms, finals, projects, reports, stress, growth, and everything else higher learning brings with it, the time is here. You’ve graduated.So now what?All of you have degrees in hand, and the lucky among you have already secured your first jobs. But while the degree may have helped you get the job, success within the position is totally up to you from here on out. This is no longer a classroom, it’s a real-live business that is now depending on you to thrive and help it do the same. And if you don’t, there... view article details