The Alcott Group's

At The Alcott Group's "Take Your Children to Work Day," Kids Get Real Lessons in

Business Operations, Profits, Paychecks, Benefits and Taxes!!!

For The Alcott Group, sharing its knowledge about employee services, payroll, taxes and benefits is a natural. However, the audience is usually other businesses.  This time, the lessons were for the children of Alcott's employees.  What they learned at the company's recent "Take Your Children to Work Day" was how a business runs and makes profits, how employees are hired, paid, receive benefits, invest and pay taxes  - all of which you can't learn too young.

The children, ranging in age from 5 to 12 years old, started off the day with breakfast at 9 and then a welcome from Alcott President Lou Basso and Executive Vice President Barry Shorten. In his welcome address, Mr. Basso taught the children a lesson in how business makes a profit. He used an example most kids understand - the all time favorite first business, the lemonade stand. He explained how, just like in a lemonade stand, businesses have expenses for producing their products or providing their services and then they must sell their product or service at a price at which they will make a profit. The kids seemed to understand and probably more than one went home with a plan to have a lemonade stand this summer!

After their lesson in sales and profits, these "new hires" had to fill out paperwork and attend an orientation for "new employees." At the orientation, they received ID cards, and learned all about employee benefits and the importance of staying healthy. The left their orientation with goody bags, filled with band aides, toothbrushes, pens and treats, in hand.

Next on the agenda was a visit to Alcott's Information Technology department. The IT Department created a special personalized DVD for each child which contained video from footage the children were taping of their activities throughout the day.  From the IT department, it was on to Operations where they learned about investing money for the future.

Then, Alcott offered its rookie team members an Employee Assistance Program activity.  It included a discussion of career choices and what they might want to be when they grow up, as well as their parents' jobs. As part of the activity, each child was asked to create an arts and craft project portraying how they view their parents' jobs.

Next came a pizza lunch, followed by recess which included a vigorous walk around the corporate/industrial park in Farmingdale where Alcott is headquartered. Then, the children attended a "Power of Friendship Workshop" where they bonded with the other children and learned the value of teamwork and collaboration.

What came next was something that perks the interest of every employee: getting paid.  During this mock activity, the children earned their pay in "Alcott dollars," then visited the Accounting Department, who collected the necessary taxes from their pay checks. They had the opportunity to purchase benefits and invest in their 40l(k)s.

According to Alcott Employee Relations Specialist, Michelle Dean, PHR, who led the company's Take Your Children to Work Day Committee, "I think the children learned many important lessons. They learned the value of having medical benefits and how important it is to stay healthy, and also to invest money from a young age. Some of the children asked very intelligent questions about investing including how much they should invest.  Every child elected benefits and invested in the 401(k)."

Alcott President Lou Basso stated, "The Alcott team did a great job in showing the kids what going to work is really like for Mom and Dad and all the various aspects of employment. We have never had a layoff at Alcott and place a high value on our employees. We emphasi