Every four years, USGlass magazine conducts unique research in conjunction with its “Best Companies to Work For” issue. In fact, our team undertook two separate research projects to produce the Best Companies feature in our September 2025 issue.

Editor Ellen Rogers, in consultation with our vice president of research, Nick St. Denis, gathered the benefits and perks from a wide variety of industry companies and ranked them according to a proprietary scale.

And what scale did they use?

That’s the unique part of the second research project connected with the Best Companies issue. A separate survey of employees currently in the glass industry was conducted to find the perks and benefits upon which they put the highest value. Those most highly valued by employees are weighted more heavily. This provides a singular snapshot of what’s essential to the industry’s current employees–and how their employers measure up.

This brings me to the third part of the survey: a comparison of the benefits the best industry companies offer to the benefits the best companies in other industries provide. USGlass magazine looks to see where results diverge.

Top Five Benefits Glass Industry Employees Have:

1. Paid time off (vacation/sick/personal time)
2. Employer-covered healthcare
3. Salary increases
4. Pension and retirement plans
5. Flex time

Consider these stats for the glass industry’s finest:

• All the companies paid at least part of their employees’ health insurance coverage. The top two in the 1-100 employee category, plus one in the 101-1,000 employee category, offer fully paid.
• The average amount of fully paid vacation time each employee receives is 3.9 weeks.
• Long-term disability insurance is available through every company, save one. Approximately 50% of the employers fully pay for insurance, and 50% partially pay for it.
• Ninety-three percent of the industry’s best companies offer a pension or 401 (k) program with an employer match. Seventy-six percent provide a full match, while 16.1% offer a partial match.
• Maternity leave requires a deeper look. At first glance, 77.7% provide employer-paid parental leave for at least two weeks. On further review, though, a relatively high percentage of survey participants skipped this question, so the sample size became extremely small.
• Sick time varied widely; the average number of sick days allotted was 11.9 days.

The survey magnifies specific aspects of employee satisfaction. Most general studies say that while they are important, a safe, caring and flexible work environment is at the top of the list regarding what employees want. Here’s a look at what Forbes Advisor says are the top five benefits most important to employees:

Top Five Benefits Employers Provide:                              Top Five Benefits Employees Want:

Employer covered healthcare                                      Employer-covered healthcare

Life insurance                                                                    Life insurance

Pension and retirement plans                                      Pension and retirement plans

Mental health assistance                                              Paid time off

Employee discounts                                                       Mental health assistance

As you read the September issue, consider the employee comments provided in the submission. They also provide a large window into what is important:

1. Employer-paid vacation
2. Employer-paid medical insurance
3. Employer-paid holidays
4. Tie: Regular salary increases and access to retirement/pension/401K
5. Employer-paid sick/personal time