Employee Benefits
Benefits and Compensation
To attract and retain good people, it is important to provide fair compensation and benefits packages. Our benefits package allows us to hire and retain good employees in a way that our salary system alone cannot.
Employees working 20-39 hours per week earn benefits at a rate proportional to their work time.
The ELCA Board of Pensions manages four benefits for the churchwide organization:
The Retirement Plan
Vested on the first day of employment; the employing unit contributes an amount based on 10% of employee's annual salary.
Health and Wellness
This includes medical, dental and chiropractic benefits. An Employee Assistance Program (confidential counseling) and discounted vision care is also included. Premiums for the health plan are paid by the employing unit for the employee and eligible dependents.
Disability Plan
Allows qualified employees to continue to receive salary and health benefits.
Survivor Benefits Plan
Serves as a form of life insurance for employees.
In addition to the benefits provided by the Board of Pensions, the churchwide organization provides a number of benefits to its employees. These are:
- Vacation (two weeks for new employees; three weeks after two years; four weeks after five years)
- Sick leave and family illness Personal days (three per year)
- Holidays – ten assigned days
- Four (4) weeks of paid maternity/paternity and adoptive leave
- Compassionate leave (three paid days per loss)
- Community Service Day
- Workers' Compensation coverage
- Family medical leave (unpaid leave)
- Travel accident insurance
- Housing allowance for clergy Relocation (where applicable)
- Workplace lactation program
- Free notary public services
- Electronic deposit of paychecks
- Personal mail services
- Training and development opportunities sponsored by Human Resources
- Paid breaks (for non-exempt employees)
- Jury and election time off
- Service recognition (in increments of five years)
- Free parking and convenient access to public transportation
- Free long-term parking and shuttle to O'Hare
There are optional benefits as well:
- Voluntary salary reduction contributions to 403 (b) plan
- Continuing Education Plan (employing unit triples employee contributions)
- Accidental Death and Dismemberment coverage
- Pre-retirement counseling
- Flexible Spending Accounts (medical and dependent care expenses)
- Membership in credit union
- Transit benefits (for Chicago-based staff)
Finally, there are intangibles which are important benefits, including weekly chapel services, numerous educational opportunities with guest speakers and brown-bag discussions, and flexible scheduling where work-flow permits.