Compensation is a hot topic among traveling healthcare professionals, but often the discussion is limited to hourly rates. Because benefits also represent a significant part of the pay equation, we asked Cynthia Kinnas, co-founder and president of Clinical One’s National Healthcare division, based in Wakefield, Mass., to weigh in on the value of benefit packages.

HT: Why do travelers make assignment decisions based so heavily on the hourly pay rate?

Kinnas: Well, of course, pay rate is very important and travelers naturally want to earn as much as they can. But I think some travelers may wrongly assume that every company offers roughly the same benefits, and put too much emphasis only on the hourly rate or net take-home pay. If travelers don’t look carefully at benefits and what they’re worth, they may actually be leaving money on the table.

HT: What questions should travelers ask about benefit packages?

Kinnas: Most agencies pay for housing and travel expenses, and offer some insurance. Not all reimburse for utilities or pay deposits, though. With insurance, travelers should find out exactly what’s offered, what their portion of the premiums is, and when the benefits kick in. Some agencies provide medical coverage only; others also include dental, vision, disability, and life insurance. Retirement plans are another issue. Is the 401-K a matching plan? That’s a big one.

HT: How can travelers determine what benefits are worth?

Kinnas: If they can’t find out the value of the package in exact dollars from their recruiter, it’s pretty easy to estimate and then do some calculations. Basically, you add up the total value of the benefits for the length of the assignment and divide that by the number of hours you’ll be working during the contract. Add the result to your hourly rate and then you can compare apples to apples when deciding on one assignment over another.

HT: Help us out with the math, if you could.

Kinnas: For a 13 week assignment, if you add up housing, travel expenses, insurance, 401-K match, and a sign-on bonus and the grand total is $6,500, for example, you’d divide that by the number of hours you’ll work. Let’s use 468 for this example. The final number adds almost $14 to the hourly compensation. This is why I encourage travelers not to take an assignment for what may seem like an extra $2 an hour without really looking into the true value of the benefits.

HT: What if a traveler doesn’t need, for example, health insurance. Maybe they’re covered under a spouse’s policy or have their own preferred plan.

Kinnas: If there are certain pieces of a package that are not important to a traveler, they can certainly ask for a higher hourly rate in lieu of those benefits. How that works out would vary from company to company.

HT: What else should travelers pay attention to when it comes to benefits?

Kinnas: Don’t overlook the value of continuing education, possible extension bonuses, and license fee reimbursement. It all adds up.