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Benefits for part-time employees: what small businesses offer (2027)

Updated 16 sources 4 min read
Short answer

Part-time employees get far fewer benefits than full-time staff: in March 2026, 23% of part-time private industry workers had access to employer medical care, compared with 87% of full-time workers, and 59% had paid sick leave, 44% a retirement plan and 14% life insurance, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The ACA does not require employers to offer health coverage to employees who average under 30 hours a week, though part-time hours count toward the 50-employee threshold for the employer mandate. Low-cost options include paid sick leave, employee-paid voluntary benefits, an individual coverage HRA for a part-time class, and telehealth or discount memberships.

  • 23%Part-time workers with medical care
  • 44%Retirement plan
  • 59%Paid sick leave
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Price table

Share of part-time private industry workers with access to each benefit, March 2026 (BLS)
ItemTypicalNotes
Part-time workers with medical care[1][2] 23% Full-time workers: 87%. Only 11% of part-time workers enroll
Retirement plan[3] 44% Full-time workers: 81%. 20% of part-time workers participate
Paid sick leave[5] 59% Full-time workers: 88%
Paid holidays[5] 47% Full-time workers: 92%
Paid vacation[5] 38% Full-time workers: 93%
Life insurance[4] 14% Full-time workers: 74%

Prices are national ranges from the sources listed below. Your price depends on your provider, location and case; confirm the cost with your provider before treatment. How we get these prices

What benefits part-time employees get

The BLS National Compensation Survey for March 2026 shows how far part-time benefits trail full-time ones in private industry:[1][2][3][4][5]

Benefit Part-time workers with access Full-time workers with access
Paid sick leave 59% 88%
Paid holidays 47% 92%
Retirement plan 44% 81%
Paid vacation 38% 93%
Medical care 23% 87%
Life insurance 14% 74%

Paid sick leave is the benefit part-time workers have most often. Medical care is the biggest gap: when it is offered, 47% of part-time workers with access enroll, and only 11% of all part-time private workers are in an employer medical plan.[2] For part-time workers who do enroll in single coverage, employers pay 82% of the premium on average.[6]

The BLS counts a worker as part-time using each employer’s own definition, not a fixed number of hours.[13]

Are employers required to offer benefits to part-time employees?

For health coverage, no. The ACA employer mandate applies only to employers with 50 or more full-time employees, including full-time equivalents, and only requires an offer to full-time employees (those averaging 30 or more hours a week).[7][8] The IRS notes that nothing stops an employer from offering coverage to more than its full-time employees.[7]

Other rules still reach part-time staff:

  • Legally required benefits. Social Security, Medicare, federal and state unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation are legally required benefits, not optional ones.[13]
  • Marketplace notice. Employers must give every employee a notice of coverage options available through the Health Insurance Marketplace, whether or not the employee is eligible for the company plan.[9]
  • Family and Medical Leave Act. Employers with 50 or more employees must give eligible employees up to 12 workweeks of leave in a 12-month period. A part-time employee qualifies after 12 months on the job and at least 1,250 hours in the 12 months before leave.[14]
  • State and local laws. Some states and cities set their own paid sick leave or disability rules; check your state labor department.

ACA rules for part-time employees

  • Full-time line: at least 30 hours of service a week, or 130 hours in a calendar month. Anyone under that is part-time for ACA purposes.[8]
  • Part-timers count toward 50: add the monthly hours of all non-full-time employees, capping each person at 120, and divide by 120. The result is your full-time equivalents for that month.[8]
  • The 95% rule: a large employer must offer coverage to at least 95% of full-time employees and their dependent children.[7] For 2027, missing that can cost $3,780 per full-time employee after the first 30 if any full-time employee gets a Marketplace tax credit.[16]
  • No duty to cover part-time staff: employees under 30 hours do not trigger the payment.[7]

Is 7 hours a day part-time?

Seven hours a day for five days is 35 hours a week, which is full-time under the ACA’s 30-hour rule.[8] For other purposes, the Fair Labor Standards Act does not define full-time or part-time work; the Department of Labor says it is generally up to the employer.[10] Write your own definition into your benefit plan documents and apply it the same way to everyone.

The 90-day waiting period (“3 month rule”)

A group health plan cannot apply a waiting period of more than 90 days once an employee meets the plan’s eligibility conditions. A plan can use a shorter waiting period or none at all.[9] This applies to part-time employees who are eligible under your plan, too.

Health insurance for part-time employees: what employers do

Among firms that offer health benefits, relatively few extend them to part-time workers, according to KFF. In 2026, 29% of firms with 200 or more workers that offer health benefits offered them to part-time workers, similar to 27% in 2025.[11] KFF reports no matching figure for smaller firms.

Employers that want to help part-time staff without adding them to the group plan can use an individual coverage HRA, now also called a CHOICE arrangement. Employers of any size can offer one, to classes defined in the rules such as full-time, part-time or seasonal employees, and there is no minimum or maximum contribution.[12]

Low-cost benefits for part-time employees

  1. Paid sick leave. The most common part-time benefit, with 59% access.[5]
  2. Retirement plan access. 44% of part-time workers have access and 20% participate.[3]
  3. Voluntary benefits. The employer arranges a group rate and the employee pays through payroll deduction. Examples include accident, critical illness, disability and life insurance, telehealth access, dental, vision and pet insurance.[15]
  4. An individual coverage HRA for the part-time class. You choose the monthly amount.[12]
  5. Telehealth and discount health memberships. A flat membership gives phone or video doctor visits and discounts on dental, vision and other care. These are discount plans, not insurance.

Where Care Anytime fits

Care Anytime is a membership for teams, not health insurance. It includes 24/7 virtual doctor and virtual vet visits by phone or video at $0 per visit, mental wellness sessions, 20% to 50% off most dental procedures, and savings on vision, hearing, lab tests and vitamins. It is not a Qualified Health Plan under the ACA, so it does not replace a health plan for an employer that must offer one.

See Care Anytime for employers Get in touch

For what a full benefits package costs per employee, see employee benefits packages for small business.

Frequently asked questions

Do part-time employees get benefits?

Some do. In March 2026, 59% of part-time private industry workers had paid sick leave, 47% paid holidays, 44% a retirement plan, 38% paid vacation, 23% medical care and 14% life insurance, according to the BLS. Full-time workers had access to each of these far more often.

Are employers required to offer benefits to part-time employees?

Under federal law, no employer has to offer health coverage to employees who average fewer than 30 hours a week. Employers with 50 or more full-time equivalent employees must offer coverage to at least 95% of full-time employees or risk an IRS payment. Legally required benefits such as Social Security, Medicare, unemployment insurance and workers' compensation still apply, and state laws can add others.

What are the ACA rules for part-time employees?

The ACA treats an employee who averages at least 30 hours of service a week, or 130 hours a month, as full-time; anyone under that is part-time. Part-time hours still count toward whether an employer has 50 full-time equivalent employees: add their monthly hours (up to 120 each) and divide by 120. Large employers may offer coverage to part-time staff but do not have to.

Is 7 hours a day considered part-time?

Seven hours a day, five days a week, is 35 hours, which is full-time under the ACA's 30-hour rule. Outside the ACA, federal wage law does not define full-time or part-time; each employer sets its own definition for its benefit plans.

What is the 3 month rule in a job?

It usually refers to the waiting period before health coverage starts. Federal rules say a group health plan cannot apply a waiting period longer than 90 days once an employee is otherwise eligible, so a plan can make new hires wait up to about three months, but no longer.

Can part-time employees get FMLA leave?

Yes, if they qualify. The FMLA covers private employers with 50 or more employees, and an employee is eligible after 12 months with the employer and at least 1,250 hours of service in the 12 months before leave, at a site with 50 or more employees within 75 miles.

Can I offer health benefits to part-time employees only?

An individual coverage HRA, also called a CHOICE arrangement, can be offered to classes of employees defined in the rules, including full-time, part-time and seasonal staff, by employers of any size, with no minimum or maximum contribution.

Sources

  1. 1 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employee Benefits in the United States, March 2026. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  2. 2 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Table 2. Medical care benefits: access, participation and take-up rates, March 2026. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  3. 3 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Table 1. Retirement benefits: access, participation and take-up rates, March 2026. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  4. 4 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Table 5. Life insurance benefits: access, participation and take-up rates, March 2026. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  5. 5 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Table 6. Selected paid leave benefits: access, March 2026. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  6. 6 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Table 3. Medical plans: share of premiums paid by employer and employee for single coverage, March 2026. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  7. 7 Internal Revenue Service. Employer shared responsibility provisions. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  8. 8 Internal Revenue Service. Determining if an employer is an applicable large employer. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  9. 9 U.S. Department of Labor. FAQs about Affordable Care Act implementation (Part XVI). Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  10. 10 U.S. Department of Labor. Full-time employment. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  11. 11 KFF. 2026 Employer Health Benefits Survey. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  12. 12 HealthCare.gov. Individual coverage HRA (CHOICE arrangement). Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  13. 13 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Handbook of Methods: National Compensation Survey concepts. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  14. 14 U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #28: The Family and Medical Leave Act. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  15. 15 BambooHR. What are voluntary benefits?. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.
  16. 16 Internal Revenue Service. Rev. Proc. 2026-22: 2027 employer shared responsibility payment amounts. Accessed Oct 31, 2026.