From working from home to vacation days to paid parental leave, company policies vary widely, and the pandemic has proven just how crucial those benefits can be. But when you’re looking for a job, it’s difficult to find out what companies offer until you’re far along in the hiring process. And if you already have a job, there’s no easy way to learn what other companies in your industry offer, to bolster your case if you want to ask your company for more. To attract top talent, companies should advertise their benefits—especially when they are great—but many of them don’t.
We canvassed 101 of the biggest and most influential companies in financial services, one of the highest-paying industries in the US, to find out what benefits they offer to employees. 32 asset managers, banks, industry groups, and accounting firms shared this information. You can look up all the data below. Here are the benefits that stood out:
🏖 Best vacation policy
Bridgewater offers unlimited vacation with a 15 day floor—employees have to take at least 15 paid days of vacation per year. The company also added six days where the entire firm is closed. PwC is also giving its employees an incentive to take their vacation days. They pay a $250 bonus when employees take consecutive vacation days, up to $1,000 a year.
🐣 Best paid parental leave
For the birth-giver: Marshall Wace gives 26 weeks. Advent offers 20 weeks of paid parental leave, followed by 12 weeks working half-time for a full salary.
For the non-birth parent: Goldman Sachs and UBS both offer 20 weeks.
🐥 Best adoption and surrogacy policy
This depends on how many kids you expect to have. Deloitte reimburses up to a lifetime maximum of $50,000 in adoption or surrogacy expenses, while PwC offers a $25,000 reimbursement per child, for adoption or surrogacy, for a lifetime maximum of $75,000.
🍼 Best backup care
Goldman Sachs offers 20 days backup care per dependent or adult family member per year, as well as an additional 20 days in the first year after the birth or adoption of a child.
🤒 Best when you’re sick
Abrdn, Bridgewater, Point72, PwC, and D.E. Shaw all offer unlimited sick days.
👩🏻🎓 Best if you’ve got student loans
Fidelity contributes $2,000 per year up to a lifetime maximum of $10,000 toward employees’ student loans. Deutsche Bank provides discounted rates on student loan refinancing.
💸 Best retirement benefits
Most firms match employee contributions up to a certain dollar amount or percentage of earnings, so the best benefits for you depend on your salary and compensation structure. Capital Group contributes 15% of total compensation—including bonuses, commissions, and overtime—no matter how much the employee contributes. (All 401k matching programs are subject to the IRS annual contribution limit.)