One in four working in senior management or higher are under-performing at work, yet still receiving an average bonus of a little under £5,000 a year. To add insult to injury, they are demanding non-financial perks, too.
Latest findings from BrightHR found nearly half (48%) of those earning over £55k per year were the most influenced by cultural perks in the workplace — with highly paid staff being more likely to expect ‘Google’ or ‘Facebook’ style offices.
Increasingly employers are offering perks as part of the job package, including extras such as a playful, fun workspace, fresh fruit in the office and games consoles, as well as flexible working and gym memberships. Traditionally, employees may have received rewards such as financial bonuses.
Younger workers
A study of 2,000 employees revealed those earning £15k or less per year were the most likely not to have heard of workplace cultural perks, and were among the least influenced by Google-type set ups.
Younger workers were also more motivated by rewards, with more than 75% of 16-25 year olds saying they would work harder if they received better perks in the workplace.
With workplace expectations on the rise, it would appear men are more influenced by Google or Facebook than women, with men being 10 per cent more likely to expect more fun in the workplace.
Workaholics were also more likely to expect more from their office environment, as four in 10 people working 50+ hours a week claimed to look for a Facebook culture when seeking employment.
Scratch the surface
BrightHR’s CEO and co-founder, Paul Tooth, said: “Salary is always important to everyone, any employment survey will say this, but actually when you scratch the surface it is a hygiene factor.
“When getting a pay rise, people get a financial boost and they are happy, but this is short lived because all that happens is their outgoings expand to match their increase in salary.
“Businesses are always be fighting this balance — and salary is a blunt instrument for that reason, whereas perks are a different thing. They allow people to have a better work life balance.”
Tooth argues that a business must trust its employees with simple perks to retain their staff, as it boosts wellbeing and encourages people to work hard, with less focus on a cash bonus.
