—NUTSHELL:
FICA, PPO, HIPAA—making sense of terms like these might cause you to think “SOS!” This article describes employee benefits and where they’re commonly offered.

—SNIPPET:
When it comes to evaluating job offers, most jobseekers today know that salary isn’t everything. Benefits are an important part of job-offer negotiations for employers and employees alike.

And for good reason. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), benefits accounted for nearly 30 percent of employers’ total compensation costs in March 2005. The value of many employee benefits—such as paid sick leave or health insurance—can be greater than their monetary worth. 

But which jobs are more likely to offer benefits? What types of benefits are available? This article addresses these and other questions with data from the BLS National Compensation Survey of establishments.

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