Fitness Center Participation

gahr

How many organizations allow spouses or other family members to utilze a company-provided Fitness Center?

Where to get amounts of employers doing this?

 

Thanks

GAHR

californian

We don't have a company-provided fitness center, but we do subsidize employee and employee's spouse fitness center fees in order to decrease insurance costs.

HRforME

We are about to be opening a public fitness/gym.  The employees of the gym will get a free membership and the spouses will get 1/2 price memberships.  None of the corporate employees live on that side of town but if they did, I would suspect we would give them a discounted membership.

bevhunt

If your fitness center is onsite, better check with your insurance carrier about liability for use by nonemployees, even if they are spouses/children/domestic partners.

Decide if you will allow spouses, etc. to be in the fitness center without the employee. If you do, this becomes a security issue (will they be issued access cards, must they come through the reception area and sign in, must they wear badges, etc.) and also involves your visitors policy.

hopkin

We are thinking about doing this.  Do you mind me asking how much you subsidize and do you require proof of the employee attending the gym?

TXHRGuy

[quote user="hopkin"]We are thinking about doing this.  Do you mind me asking how much you subsidize and do you require proof of the employee attending the gym?[/quote]

 

I wouldn't get into proof of attendance.  For one thing, that could end up making your employees' private workouts turn into company sponsored events.  I could probably list of 10 other risks, but that one would be enough for me.

CELESTE42

We subsidize the employee's fitness center fee's by paying a flat $10.00 per membership. Employee's understand and sign a yearly contract -required by the fitness center- and the fitness centers in turn agree to a reduced rate per employee or family membership. We also take it directly from their payroll check once a month and pay the fitness centers the total fee.  The fitness centers were willing to reduce the monthly cost due to them being guranteed membership for a year.

californian

We do not require proof of attendance, just that the employee signed a contract with the gym and paid up. The gym contract usually reflects both.

HRforME

If you do this subsidize any or all of the cost, please realize that there is a very good possibly that you will need to tax the employee on the value of the benefit or the portion that the employer is subsidizing if the gym is not on the employer's premises and used strictly for the employees and their dependents.  The rules are in IRS Publication 15B.