When figuring out the level and type of compensation to offer its employees, private employers have a decision to make: What benefits to offer the employee group.

According to the 2007 National Compensation Survey released Aug. 22 by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, the eight states in the mountain region - that includes Nevada - are close to the national average when it comes to offering medical and retirement benefits.

About 108 million workers are represented in the survey. Seventy-seven percent are full-time, the remainder classified as part-time.

When presenting the benefits package to the newly-hired, or once a year during open enrollment, that employee usually has a choice of whether to enroll in the benefits package.

John Dalinis, president of J.D. Benefit Services Inc., in Las Vegas, said employers are finding that they have to offer some benefits.

"Twenty years ago, employers didn't really care," said Dalinis, who has been brokering medical insurance in the valley the last two decades. His clients include those in the engineering, casino, construction, electrical engineering and architectural fields.

But as employees move to the valley, from states where they had coverage, he said there is an expectation for employer-sponsored health insurance.

"Employers are forced to do it," he said.

But the biggest issue facing employers and insurance brokers is the rising cost of health insurance. While some employers have scaled back on the benefits they offer, it has led Dalinis, and others in his field, to design creative insurance packages.

Regionally, 56 percent of all employers surveyed offered some form of health care benefit, while the national average was 60 percent. Dalinis said he thinks Las Vegas and Reno are closer to the national average than the rural areas of the state.

When employees regionally have access to medical and dental benefits, 69 percent and 73 percent take up the benefits, respectively. Nationally, the take-up rates are 73 percent for medical and 77 percent for dental.

A smaller number of employers in the private sector nationally and regionally offered retirement benefits to its employees than offered health care benefits.

Regionally, 38 percent of all surveyed establishments offered some form of retirement benefit to its employees, compared to 46 percent across the nation.

The most popular form of benefit to offer is the defined compensation benefit, such as the 401k. Private industry-offered pensions, on the other hand, are losing ground.

Highly marketable employees have choices when job-hunting, said Jennifer Martinez, spokeswoman for the Southern Nevada Human Resources Association.

"From a general perspective, recruiting in Las Vegas is very difficult," she said.

That's why, in her position as senior director of human resources for Konami Gaming Inc., a Las Vegas-based gaming technology company, she seeks the best possible benefits package to present to potential employees.

But there is a downside to this, as well. While large companies manage to offer benefit packages to their employees, small businesses wrangle with whether they can even afford to offer health insurance, Martinez said.

"Small businesses are losing employees to bigger jobs because of health insurance," she said.

An employer who offers a comprehensive benefits plan - health, dental, vision, life, retirement and short-term disability - can expect to pay an average 28 percent to 32 percent above an employee's $30,000 salary in benefit compensation, she said.

"There are hidden costs employees don't even know about," she said. "Companies are working more strategically to show employees what employers are paying on their behalf."

Many employers are electing to cover 75 percent to 100 percent of health care premiums for employees without dependants, she said. But as the employee's family grows, insurance becomes more expensive, and employers' coverage of premiums can drop.

Some companies are even starting to offer employees so-called cafeteria plans, which sets aside a fixed amount of funds for the employee to create their benefits package.

"Companies are trying to be very creative while (still) monitoring costs and expenses on their bottom line," she said.

While 63 percent of employees represented regionally in the survey have access to retirement benefits of some sort through their employer, only 79 percent take the benefit, lower than the national take-up rate of 84 percent.

Instead of categorizing workers into blue- and white collar workers, this year researchers divided workers into five groupings based on characteristics - management and professional; service; sales and office; natural resources, construction and maintenance; and production, transportation and material moving.

Overall, those in the management group had the highest access to benefits, while service workers had the least access to medical and retirement benefits.

Employees were also broken down into those who make more than $15 per hour and those whose hourly wage is less than $15.

Nationally, 47 percent of private industry offered its employees making less than $15 an hour retirement benefits, with a take-up rate of 75 percent. Meanwhile, 76 percent of employers in the private sector offered their employees earning an hourly wage of $15 and higher retirement benefits, with a 90 percent take-up rate.

Martinez said the trend in private industry has for several years been a move toward 401K retirement, with the average employer contribution set at about three to four percent.

The plans are popular, as 80 percent of employees take advantage of the tax-deferred retirement plans, she said. And as employer contributions increase, so does employee participation.

Dalinis said experience has shown him that employees on the lower end of the pay scale are less likely to sign up for coverage. Oftentimes, they simply cannot afford the premium, he said.

But even so, "the majority of people presented with health insurance will take it," he said, adding that about 50 percent to 70 percent of employees will sign up for the benefits.