By
Sherri Bennett, SPHR & SHRM-CP
on
Aug
30,
2019
2 min read
0 comment(s)
Well-intentioned employers everywhere are offering gym memberships to their employees as a fringe benefit and for good reason — benefits like this make it easier to recruit and retain employees and may even lower healthcare costs for employers. However, employers are often unaware of the tax implications of a benefit like this, putting them at increased risk of fines and penalties — and taxing employees later, which can cause discontentment and disengagement. We checked in with one of our experienced HR consultants, Sherri Bennett, MBA, SPHR, SHRM-CP, to get expert guidance on what you need to know in order to expand your benefits offering to include gym memberships.
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As a professional employer organization (PEO), we understand the health and wellness of our client-employees is critical. Just like how we leverage our buying power to provide Fortune 500-level medical benefits to our clients and their employees, we also leverage our buying power to help reduce to cost of expensive gym memberships. When businesses partner with us for their comprehensive HR needs, all of their employees gain access to a discount available with a particular gym network that we have chosen to partner with. While we don't manage gym memberships as part of our benefits administration, the discount generated from our buying power helps buffer the costs associated with these memberships.
Any time you throw together a business case for a new benefit, it's important to explore and fully understand IRS guidelines and tax implications to stay compliant. Partnering with a PEO can ease the burden, so you can focus on what you do best.
Contact us today to learn more about how our payroll services can streamline your operations and enhance your financial efficiency.