Comparative study between the labor benefits granted to employees of transnational companies with operations in Costa Rica, and to employees of Costa Rican companies.
Summary
This article aims to make a comparison of the labor benefits offered by five Costa Rican companies to their collaborators and those offered by five transnational companies with operations in Costa Rica taken at random and from different sectors, based on both documentation available to the public and small Structured interviews with key personnel in companies.
Introduction
As part of the globalization process, gradually and firstly in a somewhat accelerated manner, Costa Rica has been immersed in a process that has brought multiple companies to open operations in its territory.
This is how since the years when Costa Rica was an eminently agricultural country and the first foreign companies came to exploit the lands of the Atlantic, passing through the wave of textile industries that opened their doors years ago and reached the attraction of foreign investment such and as it is being promoted today, more oriented towards customer service centers or shared service centers, thousands of Costa Ricans have worked for these large transnational companies.
The conditions under which they have worked, which clearly have not been the same in all cases, have also varied. They have varied according to the type of company, they have varied due to the great social and worker protection gains achieved in this country in the middle of the 20th century and also due to the profile of the workers that these companies seek.
The Costa Rican legal-legal apparatus tries to balance the development and interests of companies with the protection of workers, their health and well-being. Work is conceived as a right of the person, as well as respect for human rights, fair and dignified treatment, and health. Based on this, the legislation prevents employers that there are a series of basic conditions under which the worker-employer relationship must be developed, such as access to social security, a salary governed under certain norms and maximum days allowed, of also according to international conventions.
In this context, this article is developed, whose primary objective is to capture the results of a small research exercise carried out in light of the International Business course, part of a Master's in Business Administration. It also seeks to provide some inputs that can be used in a subsequent in-depth reflection on the challenges and opportunities that this represents for workers, companies and the country.
The results of a brief investigation carried out through the analysis of documentation are compared with semi-structured interviews with key personnel within the companies, in cases where it was possible to establish contact. For all purposes, efforts were made to ensure that the ten companies included in the study had characteristics that made them comparable both in terms of business and in the magnitude of their operations in the country. At the express request of the companies, their names are omitted.
Line of business of the companies considered in the investigation
Table 1: Line of business of the companies considered in the research.
As a main result, it is found that there is no greater differentiation in terms of the benefits that companies provide to their collaborators, neither by sector nor by reason of being a national or transnational company. There are some cases in which companies provide strong benefits to their collaborators based on their organizational rank, or because of their area of work, but the same benefits are offered to the bulk of the population.
This is of special interest since it usually starts from the perception that there are strong differences in the benefits that a person will receive depending on the company for which they work, however this was not visible in this study.
It was interesting in the information gathering exercise how there is a concern in both national and transnational companies to attract and retain the right personnel for their companies. In companies there is an interest in providing conditions to their collaborators that allow them to stay in their companies, as well as develop and offer the best of themselves through commitment and motivated work.
This is how in most companies there are development plans for their collaborators, encouraging them to exploit the best of each one and also encouraging them to perceive the opportunity to grow for the company. Likewise, in those companies where there are extended hours or shift work, there is the modality of having the company's own cafeterias, generally subsidized by the company or even banking services within the company (this in the industries, occasionally) in order that their collaborators have everything they might need when carrying out their tasks.
Likewise, the interest in creating integration and identification activities where it is possible to share is tangible, either through isolated occasions such as New Years Eve or through more specific celebrations related to customs or celebrations more typical of each organization (day of the secretary, mother / father, company anniversary day, etc.). These celebrations are generally organized and covered by the company.
On the other hand, there is an interest in making the worker feel that there is an interest in the company for their emotional well-being. In most of the companies consulted, policies have been implemented that aim to ensure that there is an adequate work / life balance, and that the person comes to their workplace in optimal mental and emotional conditions. Such is the case of policies in case of death of relatives, birth of children, graduations, additional vacations that vary from one company to another, the situation and the rank or seniority of the person.
As for recognitions for seniority, although they are not the norm in the companies consulted, there are several organizations that reward their collaborators for completing, for example, five years in the company through an act or visible present.
Below is a comparative table that presents the different benefits identified in the companies, and indicates whether these are granted by the companies or not.
Comparison of the main benefits provided by companies
Table II. Comparison of the main benefits provided by companies.
The option of going to a company doctor is also included within the general welfare policies of the worker, whether this is available to the collaborators at all times and within the facilities or that they are seen at a defined time and place.. Likewise, in almost half of the companies they offer the opportunity to go to specialists in the health area subsidized by the company, and in relation to the line of business (ie, physical therapists, psychologists, dentists, etc.).
It was detected that in some industries there is a tendency to have physical recreation and / or sports areas for their collaborators, such as soccer fields, gyms, martial arts classes or aerobics within the facilities, etc. In other cases, there is not enough infrastructure but support for these activities, which is why either through the company or the Solidarity Association agreements are created with gyms, spas, etc.
Very important was the fact of the efforts that have been made to adopt issues specific to the Costa Rican culture, such as the Solidarity Association by foreign companies and to create, for example, development plans and grant additional insurance to senior executives, who do not it was a practice spread until a few years ago in the country.
Finally, as a differentiating factor, the fact that most transnational companies do have strong incentives and benefits for their senior executives stands out, while in Costa Rican companies they are more an exception, as shown in the following figure.
Additional benefits provided to senior executives in some companies.
Additional benefits provided to senior executives in some companies.
Figure 1. Additional benefits provided to senior executives in some companies.
Conclusions
The study carried out does not reveal marked differences in terms of the benefits offered to the bulk of workers in national companies taken for the VS sample. Those offered by transnational companies.
There is a coupling in both ways in terms of the benefits that are given to employees in order to achieve talent retention, which is why "offers" to employees have been standardized.
