298 Human Resources Management for Public and Nonprofi t Organizations
Preston (1990) found that the opportunity to perform a variety of work
and to enhance one ’ s skill development has been instrumental in attracting
women to nonprofi t organizations. Many women choose to work in non-
profi ts despite the often lower pay they provide in order to take advan-
tage of the opportunities they offer. Organizations should not overlook
the importance of quality - of - work and quality - of - life enhancements in
motivating employees.Flexible Benefi ts
As early as the l970s, private sector organizations recognized that different
family structures necessitate different employee benefi ts (Johnson, 1988;
Wallace & Fay, 1988). Conventional employee benefi t plans were designed
to serve the needs of the family structure that was dominant during the
l940s and l950s: a working father and his dependents (a wife who stayed at
home with small children). Today, families have changed, and so have their
needs. Current family structures often include a single parent, multiple gen-
erations, and domestic partnerships. Continuing increases in dual - career
and single - parent families will likely result in a continued demand for a
variety of elder and child care services.
Some solutions have been employer - sponsored group insurance plans
that provide lower premiums, or fl exible spending accounts that enable
greater fl exibility in the types of services that benefi ts will pay for (Daley,
1998; Kossek, DeMarr, Backman, & Kolar, 1993).
In the past, wives often took care of elderly parents or in - laws and chil-
dren. Today there are many single - parent families or families in which both
spouses work full-time, and they are unable to care for their children or parents
during their working hours. Thus, many benefi t plans now have provisions
for elder and child care. Employees with small children may need child care,
employees with elderly or infi rm parents may prefer elder care, and employees
without any dependents might opt for other benefi ts, such as dental care.
Child and elder care responsibilities have an impact on job perfor-
mance as well as fi nancial costs. Research has found that caregiver respon-
sibilities result in the excessive use of the phone at work, lateness, and
unscheduled time off. Employee time spent on caregiver responsibilities
affects productivity, absenteeism, turnover, and morale (Nelson - Horchler,
1989). A survey conducted by the National Alliance of Caregiving and
Evercare, a division of UnitedHealth Group, found that family members
responsible for caregiving often spend on average about $ 5,500 a year in
caregiving expenses, in addition to the physical and emotional stress that
already exists (Evercare and National Alliance of Caregiving, 2007).