Jason’s Deli has teamed up with Sophia Learning to provide employees access to Sophia’s online, self-paced educational platform. The $99-per-month subscription includes access to more than 60 general education college-level courses and is reimbursable per Jason’s Deli’s tuition reimbursement policy. It is available for both full-time and part-time employees. Additionally, Jason’s Deli employees will be eligible to receive the tuition reimbursement benefits for multiple reimbursement cycles, including consecutively month over month.
“At Jason’s Deli, we recognize that financial barriers can be an obstacle for our employees who want to meet their education goals. Jason’s Deli is proud to launch our education benefits program with Sophia to help remove this burden for our employees,” said Alex Cone, VP of human resources for Jason’s Deli, in a statement. “Sophia's platform is a great partner for us and will allow our diverse workforce to continue to learn and excel, whenever or wherever they choose."
Sophia’s courses are ACE-recommended for college credit. The platform currently partners with over 60 colleges and universities who have agreed to award credit for Sophia courses. Through the partnership, Jason’s Deli employees will be eligible to receive credit with Sophia partner institutions as well as apply for consideration at non-partner institutions.
“As more frontline workers consider going back to school, having access to affordable general education courses that are flexible and transferable will be absolutely critical for them,” Sophia CEO Shawna Thayer said in a statement.
With this partnership, 250-unit Jason’s Deli becomes the latest restaurant chain to offer an education benefits program. Last year, KFC began offering tuition-free higher education to eligible employees. Brinker recently extended its education benefits to eligible family members, while Papa Johns eased eligibility requirements for its Dough and Degrees program. Such programs aren’t new — Starbucks launched a tuition coverage program in 2014 with Arizona State University, for example — but they are growing as recruitment and retention in the industry remain a major challenge and as employees have noted that job satisfaction is about more than just higher wages. Benefits are extending well beyond education as well. Chipotle just added a 401(k) match for employees who make eligible student loan payments, while TGI Fridays began reimbursing its general managers for vacation expenses last year.
Contact Alicia Kelso at [email protected]