These days a lot of people don’t even see their pay stubs; what is out of sight is out of mind. Extra cash doesn’t get noticed or appreciated as much by employees as an intentional perk, gift, or award. Employees make that psychological connection between perks program and the things that are meaningful in their lives. That, by and large, is more impactful towards the morale of the employee and for the company as well. Google actually did an A/B test on this very topic with their team. They found that employees who were given cash were not retained as long as those who felt supported by their company through experiences and perks. They published the results in “Work Rules” if you’re interested in checking it out.