Update:
I had a breakfast meeting with a candidate for whom I'm wanting to make some of these compensation plans for.
He's an ex-Marine, good guy, softspoken, seemed to do very well while in the Marines. (Lanelle, I told him about your annual beds
)
I laid things on the line for him, told him I wanted to offer someone a salary, and that it may mean that for a portion of the winter I'm paying this person to essentially do nothing. I dug a little more into his work history, asked him a few more direct questions about some issues that I wanted clarification on, and then laid out a plan where we'd start with an hourly wage, and if things appeared to be progressing well for both of us (I continued to see more potential in him, and he still liked the idea of a long-term relationship), then we'd move to a salary arrangement.
I'm still unsure how much $$ I should sink into a benefit package, and would like to get more input here, if possible. I want to begin to build this company into a place where normal people, with spouses and families, can earn a decent living. Not just a place where I take a young person, wring him out and toss him aside.
Oddly, I found it cathartic to be so upfront about the winter work situation - I normally tried to call as little attention to that as possible. I brought the issue front and center and it seemed to make things easier.
Anyway.....
What kind of dollars are reasonable to drop on medical bennies?