2009 has given employers and employees a run for their money -- literally. Budgets have been cut, layoffs made and furloughs instituted, and benefits and perks have evaporated. At the beginning of the year, 38 percent of employers said the economy would force them to make administrative cuts sometime during 2009, according to a survey by CareerBuilder.com. Sixty-five percent of those employers indicated that they would cut back company social events, 61 percent anticipated curtailing business travel, 25 percent expected to scale back on health-care benefits and 11 percent planned to reduce wellness benefits. Other areas where companies planned to cut spending included special office perks, such as coffee, ice machines or discounted vending -LRB- 34 percent -RRB-, incentive trips -LRB- 28 percent -RRB- and philanthropic activities -LRB- 21 percent -RRB-. Such perks and benefits being taken away make for a tough situation for employees. Not only are they working harder to keep their jobs, but workers have to do more for less. While some argue that it's hard to keep employees motivated in this situation, others say that they should n't focus on incentives, but rather think about the bigger picture. When perks and benefits are taken away, management often does this to allocate resources where they 're needed, elsewhere. The money being saved by not buying bagels every Friday or