Lavish Perks, Fair Pay

Employees of Fortune's Best Companies to Work For seem more content with their salaries now than they were ten years ago. There have been a lot of other changes, too.

What a difference a decade makes. 2008 marks the 10th anniversary of Fortune's list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For, and a close look at this year's honorees reveals a lot about how the U.S. economic landscape has changed.

Increasingly, it seems, the best places to work are privately held. Ten years ago, 67 of the top 100 were public. This year, just 44 need to answer to shareholders or Wall Street analysts. "Aha!" you may be thinking. "No wonder these outfits can lavish such great perks and benefits on employees!" Good point, especially since some of those perks might strike some corporations as too controversial for comfort. In 1998, for example, 28 of the Best Companies offered domestic-partner benefits for same-sex couples. Today, 72 do.

The Best Companies to Work For offer some unusual perks as well. At no. 61 Chesapeake Energy Company, employees can get their scuba certification at classes in the company's on-site Olympic-size pool. Chesapeake hires the instructor and picks up the tab for instructional materials. Meanwhile, employees of No. 93-ranked Erickson Retirement Communities can get married in a chapel on the grounds of an Erickson retirement village for free or a nominal fee.

Other firms know the way to employees' hearts is through their stomachs. Among the best cafeterias: FactSet Research Systems, run by chef Alex Dino, who studied with Eric Ripert at Le Bernardin in New York. Oh, and lunch is free Monday through Thursday.

When looking at the Best Companies to Work For by state, California and Texas have the most Best Companies on this year's list. Indeed, each has 13 Best Companies headquarters within its borders.

Meanwhile, the economy's continuing shift to services is clear. In 1998, the 100 Best included 31 manufacturers – comprising almost one-third the list - and just one law firm and three professional services companies. In 2008, only 14 manufacturers turn up – but there are five law firms and 11 service providers.

Intriguingly, employees of Best Companies seem more content with their pay now than they were ten years ago. When asked whether they receive a fair share of their employer's profits, in 1998 56% of respondents agreed. Remember, that was back in the giddy era of unlimited stock options, 19-year-old dotcom CEOs, and what former Fed chairman Alan Greenspan famously called "irrational exuberance." Now, one recession and a couple of big bubble bursts later, a heightened sense of reality seems to have set in. Although inflation-adjusted salaries have stayed pretty constant, 71% now agree their pay is fair.

It also can't hurt that many of the Best Companies to Work For pay well. Indeed, at Bingham McCutchen, associates take home more than $211,000 a year on average. That made them no. 1 among top-paying Best Companies.

With unemployment rising and forecasters warning another recession may be just ahead, it's worth noting that the 100 Best Companies are phenomenal job-creation machines. They employed about 1.6 million people in 2007, up 16% from the year before. Even so, good luck getting a foot in the door. The average company on the list has 15,853 people on the payroll - and gets 96,062 applicants each year.

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