Employee benefits can influence workers' decisions when choosing a new job or staying with a current employer. In fact, 4 in 5 employees would prefer new or additional benefits to a pay raise. And some benefits matter more to employees than others. Here's a list of five preferred benefits and perks:

1. Health insurance – Employees highly value their health care benefits. As costs for health care services continue to increase, employees appreciate medical coverage for unexpected health problems. Since many employers now offer high-deductible medical benefits, employees are requesting voluntary options, such as dental and vision plans, to assist with preventive care. These are plans employees tend to use most often. (Learn more about voluntary insurance by downloading this whitepaper.)

2. Paid leave – The Society for Human Resource Management reports that 97 percent of employers offer some type of paid vacation leave to full-time employees. Other findings are:

• 86 percent provide 6-20 vacation days, and 40 percent offer 11-15 days of paid time off to full-time employees

• 98 percent offer paid holidays to full-time workers

• 95 percent include some form of paid sick leave to all employees

3. Recognition – Employees recognize that completing projects and meeting deadlines on time are part of their work responsibilities. However, they appreciate a word of thanks for hard work. And when consistently working above and beyond expectations, bonus pay, paid time off or gift cards are valued rewards.