Salary Survey Extra is a series of dispatches that give added insight into the findings of our annual Salary Survey. These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.

When most workers get a paycheck in 2021, the funds go straight into a bank or credit union account. The average certified IT professional probably never sees a printer-ink-and-paper paycheck stub, and likely only looks at a digital paycheck stub when it’s required to secure a loan, line of credit, utility connection, and so forth.

It’s probably fairly rare to encounter — or think much about — the other items listed on a paycheck stub. What amount, for example, is listed under the heading “retirement” (or perhaps “401K”)? How quickly per paycheck do the numbers given under “PTO” (or perhaps “vacation”) accrue? These are just a couple of examples of forms of compensation that are not, strictly speaking, part of your salary.

We essentially lump all forms of non-salary compensation together under the generic label “benefits,” which encompasses everything from retirement planning and vacation time to healthcare and tuition assistance. If you ever feel like you aren’t being paid as much as you’re worth, then it can be helpful to consider everything else that your employer is already putting on the table.

We always include a couple of questions about non-salary compensation in the Salary Survey. Today we’re taking a look as some of your answers. More specifically, what are the most common forms or non-salary compensation, both among certified IT professionals in United States, and among certified IT professionals in other nations?

ALL U.S. WORKERS
Type of Benefit — Percentage of survey respondents who receive this benefit
Medical insurance — 91.3 percent
Paid time off (PTO) — 89.1 percent
Dental insurance — 88.5 percent
Vision insurance — 85.8 percent
401(k) — 82.9 percent
Sick time — 66.1 percent
Training or certification assistance — 62.5 percent
Flexible scheduling — 56.1 percent
Bonus or incentive programs — 52.5 percent
Tuition assistance — 48.6 percent
Pension or other retirement fund —  30.5 percent
Stock options — 28.2 percent
Parking and transit assistance — 24.5 percent
Child care — 21.7 percent

ALL NON-U.S. WORKERS
Type of Benefit — Percentage of survey respondents who receive this benefit
Medical insurance — 68.3 percent
Sick time — 63.2 percent
Paid time off (PTO) — 60.8 percent
Training or certification assistance — 56.5 percent
Bonus or incentive programs — 52.5 percent
Pension or other retirement fund — 49 percent
Flexible scheduling — 40.9 percent
Dental insurance — 33.8 percent
Vision insurance — 21.4 percent
Stock options — 19.7 percent
Parking and transit assistance — 18.9 percent
Child care — 17.3 percent
Tuition assistance — 12.3 percent
401(k) — N/A

Almost all certified IT professionals in the United States can count on their employer for medical insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, paid time off, and a 401(k). Sick time is less frequently provided, and only about half of workers benefit from a bonus or incentive program. It’s nice to see that support for employee training and certification efforts is as robust as it is.

There’s very little support for workers who need child care, on the other hand, and the glory days when tech hires got stock options almost automatically are clearly well behind us. Pensions have been more or less replaced by 401(k) plans across the U.S. employment spectrum, and that’s largely true here as well.

Medical insurance is the most common form of non-salary compensation provided to non-U.S. workers, with sick time, training or certification assistance, and paid time off also fairly widely available. U.S. tech workers contemplating moving to another country, however, should clearly not expect the same level or variety of benefits that they’re likely accustomed to.