OVERVIEW OF STATE AGENCY AND EMPLOYEE USE OF CERTAIN NONMONETARY BENEFITS Nonmonetary benefits, including wellness programs, flexible Government Code, Chapter 664. Seven agencies scheduling and telecommuting, and employer-sponsored made use of most or all of the benefits, and two training and professional development, enhance the package agencies did not offer any of these benefits. of direct and indirect compensation offered to state employees Most responding agencies authorized telecommuting in Texas. Various sections of the Texas Government Code or flexible scheduling. More than half the employees authorize agencies to offer a range of these benefits. at four agencies either telecommuted or worked an Legislative Budget Board staff collected information from 13 alternate schedule. state agencies that collectively employed approximately 56.3 All responding agencies provide some degree of staff percent of all state employees during fiscal year 2017. The development training. Eight agencies offer tuition data collected showed how often agencies offer statutorily reimbursement for employees seeking a general authorized nonmonetary benefits, how the implementation equivalency diploma (GED) or taking college or of benefits varies among agencies, and which benefits graduate courses related to their jobs, and five offer employees use the most. assistance to employees in maintaining job-related Most of the agencies responding to the information request professional licenses or certifications. have adopted nonmonetary benefits authorized by statute. Seven made use of most or all of the wellness benefits DISCUSSION pursuant to the Texas Government Code, Chapter 664. Since the middle of the twentieth century, U.S. employee Most of the 13 responding agencies authorize some degree of compensation packages typically have consisted of salaries telecommuting or flexible scheduling pursuant to the Texas and packages of benefits that provide indirect compensation, Government Code, Chapter 658. Agencies have used the including retirement and health benefits. Recently, the costs authorization in the Texas Government Code, Chapter 656, of providing health insurance have risen faster than the costs to offer a range of training and educational support to of wages and salaries, resulting in more cost sharing between employees. employers and employees. A similar concern about costs has The nonmonetary benefits authorized in the Texas driven a shift away from defined-benefit retirement plans and Government Code are similar to those offered in private toward defined-contribution plans. At the same time, sector and other public sector employment. Typically, state employee compensation packages increasingly include as a agencies have used these authorizations to adapt benefits to standard part some degree of nonmonetary benefit, such as their cultures and workforces and have adopted policies that family-friendly and career-related benefits. limit potential abuse. The Employees Retirement System (ERS) provides benefits to Texas state employees, retirees, and eligible family FACTS AND FINDINGS members. ERS retirement benefits continue to be defined- Throughout the United States economy, employee benefit, although state employee salaries typically have lagged compensation packages have evolved to include private-sector salaries and some federal employee salaries. nonmonetary benefits as a standard part. When the state economy does well, turnover among state employees increases. Among workers younger than age 50 The ability to report participation rates in wellness who left state employment during fiscal year 2017, the most activities varied among agencies, especially at those common reason was better pay and benefits. in which wellness, telecommuting, and flexible scheduling participation is tracked and managed at The State Auditor’s Office’s (SAO) biennial reportState the employee-supervisor level. Employee Benefits as a Percentage of Total Compensation includes the estimated average value of the compensation Of the agencies contacted, most offered at least package provided to state employees. For fiscal year 2017, some of the wellness benefits pursuant to the Texas the SAO estimated the average value of a classified, full-time LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD STAFF – APRIL 2019 LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD STAFF REPORTS – ID: 4830 1 OVERVIEW OF STATE AGENCY AND EMPLOYEE USE OF CERTAIN NONMONETARY BENEFITS employee’s compensation package at $72,205, of which • Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC); annual direct compensation accounted for $46,475, or 64.4 • State Preservation Board (SPB); percent, and benefits made up $25,730, or 35.6 percent. SAO estimated average values for the following benefits: • Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA); • federally required payroll expenses, including those • Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ); for Social Security, Medicare, unemployment compensation, and workers’ compensation; • Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA); • paid time off, including for holidays, vacation, and sick leave; • Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR); • health insurance; • Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT); • retirement contributions; and • Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired • longevity pay. (TSBVI); SAO excluded from its analysis state compensatory time and • Texas Veterans Commission (TVC); and certain types of conditional or situational leave, including court-appointed special advocates volunteer leave, • Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). educational activities leave, military leave, and emergency In an effort to better understand how often agencies offer leave. The agency also excluded from its calculations benefits statutorily authorized nonmonetary benefits, how the set forth in various sections of the Texas Goverment Code implementation of benefits varies among agencies, and that agencies are authorized, although not required, to which benefits employees use most, the LBB asked for the provide their employees, but whose value may be difficult to following information: quantify. These benefits include wellness policies, alternative work sites and schedules, and state-sponsored professional • whether the agency had implemented any of the development. wellness policies pursuant to the Texas Government Code, Section 664.061; Although some private employers offer a wider range of benefits, including on-site recreation, consumer services, and • whether the agency offered telecommuting, flexible dog-friendly policies, the nonmonetary benefits authorized scheduling, or compressed work week options in the Texas Goverment Code are similar to those offered by pursuant to the Texas Government Code, Chapter the private sector and by the City of Austin. 658; • whether the agency provided employee training or STATE AGENCY BENEFITS IMPLEMENTATION education benefits pursuant to the Texas Government Legislative Budget Board (LBB) staff collected information Code, Chapter 656; and from 13 state agencies that together had an average fiscal year 2017 headcount of 92,233.8 employees, representing • other questions related to the agency’s participation approximately 56.3 percent of all state employees that year, rates, rules or policies governing the benefit, and excluding those in higher education institutions. The relevant expenditure codes. following responding agencies are diverse in function, size, average employee salary, turnover rates, and geographic WELLNESS distribution of employees: The goal of workplace wellness programs is to help individuals reduce health risk and prevent disease. Wellness programs • Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA); typically include a health-screening component to identify • Department of Family and Protective Services risks and interventions to reduce risks and promote healthy (DFPS); lifestyles. These employee benefits are increasingly common in compensation packages. A 2012 RAND Corporation • Department of Information Resources (DIR); survey of 3,000 public-sector and private-sector entities estimated that 80.0 percent of all U.S. employers with more 2 LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD STAFF REPORTS – ID: 4830 LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD STAFF – APRIL 2019 OVERVIEW OF STATE AGENCY AND EMPLOYEE USE OF CERTAIN NONMONETARY BENEFITS than 1,000 employees offered a wellness program. • financial incentives for participating in a wellness Additionally, a 2011 survey of employers by the management program developed by the Department of State consulting firm Aon Hewitt found that almost half of Health Services (DSHS); employers without a wellness program planned to add one • onsite clinic or pharmacy services; and within three years to five years. The RAND survey found that wellness programs are associated with a decrease of health • additional wellness policies, as determined by the risks but were unlikely to decrease healthcare costs. agency. In its 2013 response to the RAND report, however, the The Texas Government Code, Chapter 664, grants agencies Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) stated discretion regarding whether or to what degree they that the cost effectiveness and return on investment of implement employee wellness programs. This discretion wellness programs is contingent on their design and enables each agency to adopt policies that would be practical implementation. SHRM’s report cites several studies by and appealing for its workforce. Authorizing agencies to nonpartisan coalitions of industry leaders, consultants, and customize their programs is consistent