Small business can afford work/life benefits

A banner outside McDonald's on Bird Road and Ludlum advertises its current plight: Now Hiring $6.75 and up days, $7.40 and up nights, health benefits and flexible schedules available. In our labor-competitive South Florida market, even McDonald's offers above minimum wage and dangles perks to lure workers.
But as I mentioned in today's Miami Herald article, most of the benefits employees care about are low-cost. Some examples, allowing a worker to bring their child to work with them in an emergency; recognizing a worker who helped solve a problem by giving them the afternoon off. The best piece of advice consultants had on the subject: ask your employees if they are happy and what kind of benefits they want.