Dive Brief:

• The war for talent rages on, and recent employment statistics are making it even tougher on employers looking to hire. Within the past year, the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics reports that the country added 831,000 new jobs, which in turn is creating a demand for high-quality talent.

• To get both active and passive job seekers interested, employers are trying out some new perks, and according to Business.com, many of these new benefits are not overly expensive – and in some cases, may cost nothing at all. 

• One of the ideas floated in the Business.com article include what's called a sliding bonus scale, which rewards employees for high-end performance, boosts revenues and gives employees a great reason to "knock it out of the park" by earning added income as their careers develop. The critical factor is compensation costs are tied to revenues in order to offset bonuses.  

Dive Insight:

According to Business.com, another inexpensive benefit is providing stronger retirement planning resources, mainly by working with third party retirement services to help employees create smart strategies for building long-term wealth and financial security in retirement. Today, the old defined benefit pension exists mainly in the public sphere, with defined contribution plans being more prevalent (401k plans with employer matching, for example). Without spending, employers can enlist outside vendors, who may even pay for the chance to offer their products to the workforce.

Other options inclide stronger health-related packages, which might include a dental plan or a wellness option, or offering a job flexibility perk that would include partial telecommuting, for example. With the latter, employers can both avoid expensive real estate costs (by allowing work from home options) and attract younger workers.