A recognition of your hard work can make all the difference to productivity and the atmosphere within a working environment.
However, when those perks seem more like a gimmick, they can have a negative effect and can make staff wonder if they’re an invaluable member of the team. SmallBusinessPrices.co.uk conducted a survey with UK employees to see if they are satisfied with their job benefits.
The study has revealed huge differences in what people want compared to what they get, such as 6% of employees currently receiving travel and company car benefit, although 16% of staff surveyed would rather have transport benefits over a pay rise.
What You Get vs What You Want
Respondents revealed what they currently receive but also what they would value over a pay rise, key findings included:
- 20% of employees receive an employee discount, however, only 11% of the surveyed workers wanted one of their benefits to be employee discounts.
- Additional holidays/sabbaticals and flexible working hours are considered a high priority work benefit, as 26% of respondents said they would prefer the benefit over a pay rise.
- Although training is critical to career growth, only 3% of staff would prefer the perk over a pay rise, compared to the 12% that actually receive the benefit.
Gender Gap Happiness
Men and women in terms of happiness with company benefits are relatively similar – both rise and decrease in the same areas, however, they do fluctuate in terms of percentage.
- 18% of men consider themselves very happy with the company benefits they receive, whereas women are less happy with the work benefits – only 14% of women consider themselves very happy.
- More women appear to sit on the fence in terms of job benefit satisfaction: 45% described themselves as somewhat happy, compared to the 42% of men. This trend continues into neutral feelings for company benefits, as well as somewhat unhappy.
- Overall, both men and women ranked very similarly. Men ranked higher at both ends of the spectrum, with 4% of men considering themselves very unhappy with the benefits they receive compared to only 2% of women.
Generational Differences
Each generation has concerns and priorities unique to their demographic, so employers have to mindfully determine which company benefits suit their workforce.
- As a result of property prices, 29% of Generation Z and 22% of Millennials (24-38 year olds) would be tempted to apply for a job with £4000 housing contribution, while only 16% of Generation X (39-52 years old) and 15% of Baby Boomers (53-60 years old) would have the same consideration.
- 3% of Generation X and 2% of Baby Boomers looked at one years’ parental leave as an important company benefit. Interestingly, 11% of Generation Z said they’d tempted to apply for a job if a year’s parental leave was a work perk, as did Millennials.
- Health insurance and death in service is a major concern with Generation X and Baby Boomers – 49% of them consider it as a work perk compared to the 20% of Generation X and Millennials.
Ian Wright, from SmallBusinessPrices said:
“A company that goes the extra mile for their employees is always more likely to see a boost in productivity and morale. Whether it’s the people already working for you or prospective employees, work perks are slowly becoming an integral part of the working world.”
Check out the full infographic by SmallBusinessPrices.co.uk. The infographic breaks down the work perk satisfaction by gender and generations. Also, it explains what people receive from their companies and what employees actually want. It was never this easy to keep your team happy and raise its productivity!
About the author: Ian Wright is the CEO of SmallBusinessPrices.co.uk, which aims to give UK small businesses owners more accurate pricing information on a wide range of business products and services, helping them to find the right supplier and get the best deal.
