Who doesn’t like longer vacation periods or annual bonuses? Everybody does! Job seekers are on the hunt for more than just income. They look for a job that comes with benefits and an attractive work-life balance.
The hiring market is very competitive nowadays and recruiters have to become very creative to compete. Read our blog about “How To Stay Competitive In The Tech Hiring Market?” and learn the 5 methods necessary to attract talent. Let’s focus on the benefits and perks for your remote team. And why Mexico? The answer is outlined in method number 5 of that post. Go on. We’ll wait for you to go read it.
After that interjection, let’s dive into the problem here. Tech companies have risen the bar of benefits and perks they offer their employees. It doesn’t matter if you are in the IT industry or not, most likely your organization is tech-dependent so your employees expect more than the basics.
Top Software Developer Benefits
Everyone talks about Google’s headquarters and its well-known benefits packages. It’s why Google is constantly appointed one of the best businesses to work for. For example, it provides three gourmet meals a day free of charge to its staff! It provides them with a crazy array of benefits from massages to yoga courses.
They are not the only ones, Silicon Valley is full of pieces of haven for developers and professionals in the IT industry; Dropbox, Airbnb, Pocket Change, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Skype, Pandora, Uber… and many more are also doing the same.
So why is it that these companies are going above and beyond in their benefits offerings? A lot of it is due to a labor shortage in the U.S. According to research done by Indeed, US tech talent market faces a 472K shortage with 9 in 10 business owners struggling to find and hire IT professionals since 2016.
Leading companies are fighting hard with more than just high salaries in order to get the talent they need and beat out their business competitors. This problem isn’t just happening in the U.S, as we reveal in our recent Tech Salaries in Mexico Report. Companies like Microsoft, IBM, Oracle or HP, with a presence in Mexico, offer benefits and perks beyond what’s required by law.
Benefits required by law in Mexico only apply to those who are full-time employees. They are quite similar to those established by the US
Let’s look at a comparison.
Percentage-wise, benefits are the same. Housing Contribution is the odd one here, but this is a contribution an employer makes to a federal program called the National Workers’ Housing Fund Institute (INFONAVIT in its Spanish acronym). Workers use this fund to access a series of housing-related mortgage products — opportunity to buy, remodel or build a new home.
The Social Security of Mexico (IMSS in its Spanish acronym) is required by law for any company that employs an individual (excludes contractors). With this contribution from the employer, the government can cover basic medical assistance, protection of basic necessities of subsistence, well-being social services, and pensions.
In Mexico, it’s mandatory that employees receive an aguinaldo, which is the Annual Bonus we mention here. The aguinaldo is comparable to a minimum of fifteen days’ wages and will be prorated if the worker has been with the corporate for fewer than a full year. For example, if an employee earns MXN $180,000 per year, they receive an aguinaldo payment of MXN $7,500 = (MXN $180,000 / 12 months) / 2.
Large firms could pay staff thirty days of wages, which is effectively 13 months of salary per year.
PTO and Holidays in Mexico are also required by law. Full-time employees (excludes contractors) who completed 1 year of services are entitled to enjoy a 6 working day period of vacation the first year. This increases to two working days every year until reaching 12 working days. The vacation bonus is twenty-five percent of the corresponding pay throughout the vacation days.
In addition, during the course of a calendar year, Mexicans have the 7 federal holidays as a regular paid time off compared to 10 in the US. These are the following:
- January 1st – New Year’s Day
- February 5th – Constitution Day
- March 21st – Benito Juárez’s Birthday
- May 1st – Labor Day
- September 16th – Mexican Independence Day
- December 1st – the amendment of Federal Power (This vacation happens every six years with the swearing-in of a new Mexican President)
- December 25th – Christmas
Workspace is not required by law, but it’s associated with the cost of employing someone as it represents physical space and equipment expenses. As you learned before, this is something Google, and other Silicon Valley companies are using in their hiring tactics.
Now that we know the basics, let’s check what leading tech companies are giving to their workers to make them happy.
Given the competition we mentioned before in the hiring market and the quality of talent that engineering schools are churning out, big-name companies are trying to stay ahead of the curve by offering very attractive benefits packages beyond what’s required by law.
In our Tech Salaries In Mexico Report we studied 4 companies that are giving more benefits without spending a fortune. Microsoft, Oracle, HP, and IBM also offer Private Medical, Savings Fund, Food Stamps, Remote Work, Training Budget, On-site Benefits.
These perks only represent an additional 5% on top of the 31% of legal benefits already offered.
One additional thing you can offer your employees to make them happier is to allow them to work remotely. Having the chance to work from home or any place on earth can compensate for a Googleplex.
CodersLink is constantly searching the hiring landscape to provide you with quality information and help you accomplish those business objectives by helping to find, hire, and manage quality tech talent in Mexico and LATAM.
Learn More About How a Talent Solutions Partner Helps You Stay Competitive in the Hiring Landscape
Staying competitive in today’s hiring landscape is essential to landing the best talent. Let us know if your company is interested in growing its tech team internationally. We’ll be happy to discuss your options and ways to accomplish them.
