CTHRA Survey Identifies Cable Employee Benefits Trends

Naperville, Ill. – On the heels of its hallmark annual compensation report released in October 2003, the Cable and Telecommunications Human Resources Association (CTHRA) today announced highlights of its employee benefits survey. CTHRA conducted its research in December 2003 by surveying its members across the MSO, programmer and vendor communities.

“CTHRA’s latest report provides an important benchmarking tool for the industry and reflects how cable is caring for its most valuable resource—our people,” said CTHRA board member, Julie Cookson, Vice President of Human Resources for Scripps Networks, who spearheaded the research initiative with fellow board member Lisa Kaye of greenlightjobs.com.

Employee Benefits Trends
Industry employers are supportive of employees’ efforts to balance their careers and personal lives. A resounding 93% of responding companies offer work/life balance benefits, the most common offerings include employee assistance programs, flextime, telecommuting and credit unions. In addition, several companies provide creative programs such as on-site ATM banking, concierge services, employee discount programs, reduced work days during the summer, and cafeteria/meal subsidy programs.

Retirement planning resources also abound among cable’s employers with 97% offering a company match for their 401-k plans and 66% providing pension plans. In addition, 47% provide medical benefits to retirees, and the majority of employers do not plan to revise their retiree benefits in the near future.

Employers place a priority on life-long learning by encouraging their workforce to continue their professional development with 83% of the respondents providing educational reimbursement.

Reflecting the national issue of rising health care costs, 63% of participating companies in the cable industry have recently made changes or are considering changes to their employee health care plans. The most prevalent modifications reported were increased costs for employees in terms of contributions, co-payments and/or deductibles.

The complete CTHRA Benefits Report is available as a member benefit to CTHRA members in the members-only section of its Web site at www.cthra.com. In addition to its benchmarking reports, CTHRA provides a vast body of human resources knowledge and proven best practices for the cable industry.