Salary Survey Extra is a series of occasional dispatches that give added insight into the findings of our most recent Salary Survey. These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.

As the philosopher poet Neil Diamond once observed, "Money talks ... but it don't sing and dance, and it don't walk." Now, it's never been entirely clear to us why Neil Diamond, or anyone else for that matter, would have expected money to do those things. His larger point, however, is well taken: There are limitations on the general philosophical scope of what money can provide.

So while salary is the largest single element of compensation for most (if not all) IT professionals, that's not the whole picture. Most employers figure a variety of other benefits into the total compensation equation. That's why our annual Salary Survey includes a question that's intended to flesh out the picture a little. What employee benefits does your employer provide in addition to salary?

For the sake of comparison, we're breaking out the U.S. responses from the rest. (As noted elsewhere, U.S. IT professionals are overwhelmingly the largest single contingent of salary survey respondents, representing 42 percent of the total survey population for the 2015 Salary Survey.) As we did last year when reporting about employee benefits, we've also grouped the data by category. Here's what we found:

Health and Wellness: For many workers, their employer is a large contributor to covering their annual medical expenses. The breakdown of common wellness benefits and the percentage of Salary Survey respondents who receive them is as follows:

Medical Insurance — 92.1 percent (U.S.),  68.9 percent (All Other Countries)
Dental Insurance — 87.9 percent (U.S.), 27.9 percent (All Other Countries)
Vision Insurance — 82.7 percent (U.S.), 15.9 percent (All Other Countries)

Retirement and Long-Term Financial Security: Though many workers may not think of it this way, their employer will continue to pay them for years after they leave the company. The breakdown of common retirement and long-term security benefits and the percentage of Salary Survey respondents who receive them is as follows:

401(k) or Equivalent — 83.5 percent (U.S.),  6.5 percent (All Other Countries)
Pension or Other Company-Funded Retirement Account — 34.6 percent (U.S.), 44.2 percent (All Other Countries)
Stock Options — 24.2 percent (U.S.), 20.1 percent (All Other Countries)
Bonus or Incentive Program — 49.4 percent (U.S.), 47.1 percent (All Other Countries)

Attendance: Nobody wants to be at the office every day, right? The breakdown of common attendance benefits and the percentage of Salary Survey respondents who receive them is as follows:

Paid Time Off — 89.3 percent (U.S.),  44.6 percent (All Other Countries)
Sick Time — 65.7 percent (U.S.), 55.3 percent (All Other Countries)
Flexible Scheduling — 55.6 percent (U.S.), 33.1 percent (All Other Countries)
Child Care — 19.3 percent (U.S.), 16.7 percent (All Other Countries)
Parking and Transit Assistance — 25.5 percent (U.S.), 20.1 percent (All Other Countries)

Continuing Education: This is viewed by some employers as being a benefit to both the employee and the company. We'll help you improve your skills, and that will make you more valuable to us. The breakdown of common continuing education benefits and the percentage of Salary Survey respondents who receive them is as follows:

Tuition Assistance — 51.6 percent (U.S.), 9.6 percent (All Other Countries)
Training and Certification Assistance — 59.5 percent (U.S.), 50.2 percent (All Other Countries)

WHO'S YOUR WONKA? As most readers know by now, we like to lighten the mood of our salary surveys a little by asking a few questions that don't have a thing to do with salary, employement, or certification. Like, for example, which Willy Wonka do you picture in your head when someone mentions Oompa Loompas, or you see the phrase "golden ticket" somewhere? British novelist Roald Dahl's indelible character has been on the silver screen twice, and millions of children and parents have turned the pages of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

So if Charlie and the Chocolate Factory were sort of like the Highlander movies, and there could be only one Wonka, which would be the ultimate Wonka? We let Salary Survey respondents make the call, and here's how things shook out:

Johnny Depp — 41.7 percent
Gene Wilder — 37.6 percent
The book Wonka is better than either of the movie Wonkas. — 12.9 percent
Willy Wonka the real-life candy brand. Mmmm, Bottle Caps. — 7.8 percent