Work Those OTHER Benefits: Discounts And Freebies

Posted on October 23, 2007 by Melissa
Filed Under Budgeting, Household, Work

I’ll take that! Employer benefits like freebies and discounts can help keep your household spending down. These little perks can add up to big savings or can even amount to an “upgrade” in lifestyle depending on what you are offered.

Eric gets unlimited sodas and bottled water at work free while he is in the office. He also gets free popcorn. That has come in handy. If he gets hungry he has the option to get popcorn instead of paying for vending machine candy. Those savings can add up.

You might be surprised at how much of an impact you can make on your bottom line by taking advantage of these “fringe” benefits. Make sure to ask if you have any of these programs or perks offered to you; it could help out your budget.

Family Care - Some companies offer adoption assistance, substance abuse referrals, and marriage counseling. All of these benefits can help save you money if you take advantage of them.

Personal Development - Has your company been holding any free seminars lately? Do you have access to free legal assistance or free sessions with a financial planner? Those services aren’t cheap so take advantage of any help you might be able to get.

Wellness Care - Do you have wellness care available to you? Sometimes employers will provide wellness care such as free health screening, flu shots, and healthy living seminars. Free health screening can help save money in co-pays down the line.

Casual Dress Days - Dress down if you can. This helps you save on the costs of cleaning your most high maintenance and costly clothing. Take advantage of casual days. I think dress code flexibility is an important cost saving benefit.

Telecommuting - Do you have the option to work from home occasionally? This can save on your commuting costs, especially if you have a long commute. Along the same lines - if you have flexible hours try to use them to avoid traffic. That will save on frustration and gas costs.

On-Site Amenities - If you are lucky enough to have cheap (or discounted) on-site amenities consider yourself fortunate. Maybe you have access to a gym, pool, cafeteria, showers, or laundry facilities. If these services are free or offered at a nice discount this could save a lot of cash or could even allow you to enjoy luxuries you wouldn’t otherwise pay for. One of my old employers had an onsite gym, pool, cafeteria, dry cleaner, and daycare all at discount rates. Too bad I was a traveling consultant and didn’t live near campus.

Free Stuff - Is there free stuff for you at the office? I’m not talking office supplies; I mean legitimately free stuff actually provided for you to take. Free sodas, gourmet coffee, or snacks? How about a Beer Friday? Use these freebies instead of buying similar items. Do they give out shirts with their logo? Take them! Half of Eric’s wardrobe is employer-branded and it helps us save on clothing costs.

Discounts - Discounts on items you already use can really help, especially if they are substantial. Can you get the product or service your company provides or works with cheaply? For instance, if you work at a coffee shop can you get your coffee at a deep discount? Do you get discounts with major retailers? Many employers have special rates set up for car rentals, gyms, cell phone providers, hotels, apartments, even for purchasing cars or getting a mortgage. Look into it!

Miscellaneous Benefits - Some employers offer other benefits like credit score monitoring programs and access to credit unions.

Think it can’t get much better? Check out the benefits Google gives its employees. Caution: be prepared to become immediately dissatisfied with your benefits. See Google’s awesome perks here.

Do you get any unusual or especially helpful benefits for your job? If so, comment and let us know!

Image Source: rahims

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Comments

3 Responses to “Work Those OTHER Benefits: Discounts And Freebies”

Festival of Frugality #98 - The Happy Halloween Edition | beingfrugal.net on October 30th, 2007 3:02 am

[...] presents Work Those OTHER Benefits: Discounts And Freebies. Look beyond your salary when considering the benefits of your [...]
debtdieter on October 30th, 2007 2:16 pm

I have some pretty good work perks, free mobile phone service, free broadband, free shuttle bus to the campus, the ability to pay for food and drinks with my pretax salary, discounted home phone service, education assistance, volunteer leave.

I don’t use all of them (I don’t do the pretax food thing for example), but I’ll certainly be checking more closely the things I’m entitled to and taking them up if they will work for me.
Melissa on October 30th, 2007 6:28 pm

@debtdieter - Welcome and thanks for commenting! It sounds like you have some great benefits available to you. Free mobile phone and broadband would save a lot of money.