Focus on U.S. investment immigration and life in the U.S.: In recent years, elites from prestigious universities have been rushing to apply for positions at multinational tech companies such as Google, Microsoft, and Intel, leading to intense competition. These companies originally relied on promotion opportunities and salary packages to attract talent, but in recent years, a new trend has emerged: health benefits have become a key factor in attracting talent.
The U.S. government has recently proposed new healthcare reform policies, which have the greatest impact on companies: annual healthcare costs are continuously rising, while employee salaries are declining. This has led to an increasing number of job applicants prioritizing health benefits over salary.
Given that healthcare costs have become a significant portion of expenses, companies are providing more comprehensive health insurance to attract and retain talent. This includes covering costs for doctor visits, vaccinations, prescription medications, and even surgeries. An additional benefit is that employees can include their family members in their health plans, paying only a small basic fee each month to enjoy the same benefits as employees. Nowadays, at job fairs across the U.S. and in many job advertisements, companies prominently display the health benefits they offer to attract applicants.
Health benefits for employees at American companies are very diverse. The most basic include flexible working hours, allowing employees to come to work according to their own schedules, such as at 7 AM or 9 AM, but generally not later than 11 AM. As long as employees complete the tasks assigned by the company within the stipulated time and do not affect team work, they can arrange their time freely. New employees receive relocation expenses and housing allowances, with disbursement times ranging from three months to six months. Healthy cafeterias are also a major highlight, offering a wide variety of healthy foods throughout the day, prepared by professional nutritionists. Many companies have also built gyms and lounges in their office buildings for employees to exercise and relieve stress.
Some large American companies go even further. For example, at Microsoft, employees receive annual health check-ups, treatment, dental insurance, and even their spouses' medical expenses at little to no cost. Even prescription medications prescribed by doctors are covered under Microsoft’s insurance. The Fortune 500 company Entergy provides employees with free annual check-ups at designated hospitals; for surgeries, employees only need to pay 8% of the total costs; prescription medications are mostly free; and employees receive six free dental cleanings each year. Family members of employees enjoy the same health insurance as employees. A technical director known to the reporter, whose family is included in his insurance plan, had his spouse receive a pair of sunglasses and a set of contact lenses after a doctor’s examination due to her sensitivity to sunlight while driving. Since the total costs did not exceed the insurance limit, they did not have to pay anything out of pocket.