Younger Employees Want Health Care on the Job

Not that there is a lot of hiring going on, but I recently read another study, this one about what college seniors want in a first or second job.

Believe it or not, despite that old myth that young people think they’re invincible, more graduating students want health care benefits than want a retirement plan.

In the study, 19,000 graduating students from all 50 states ranked having a good insurance package a strong third behind opportunities for advancement and job security.

And when the same group listed which benefits were most important to them, medical insurance finished in first place, ahead of even annual salary increases and having access to a 401(k) plan. Moreover, only medical insurance, salary increases and 401(k) plans were mentioned by more than 50% of those surveyed. Women tended to think having a good insurance package was more important than men did.

These findings counter the long-time conventional wisdom that younger people prefer benefits that give them either more opportunity to develop their careers, like tuition reimbursement and bonuses, or more lifestyle flexibility, like vacations and flex-time.

The study was conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, a national resource center for information about the employment of college graduates for more than 50 years.