Almost half UK employers have been touting statutory requirements or basic rights as workplace benefits in their job adverts, according to a new analysis by Rippl.
The employee benefits platform looked at employers’ recruitment advertising on the largest job listing sites. It found that 46% of them were touting benefits such as annual leave, statutory sick pay and pensions.
A pension was present in 124,600 job adverts, while 20 days’ holiday was mentioned in just over 2,000. This is the minimum requirement after bank holidays. Statutory sick pay was mentioned 253 times, even though it is illegal not to pay this.
Rippl also found more than 150,000 mentions of employers offering perks such as free or on-site parking, which some candidates might already expect from an employer.
One of the most underwhelming benefits on offer was “free tea”, which featured 1,078 times, and one job even offered “free water”. Free fruit appeared 675 times.
More unusual perks included free pizza, raffles, and beanbag chairs.
Chris Brown, chief executive officer at Rippl, said: “While complementary fruit or Friday office pizza are nice to have, these perks do little to attract or retain top talent in today’s competitive job market, nor do they help nurture a meaningful relationship between an employer and its employees. These employers are offering the bare minimum, and employees can see straight through it.
“Offerings such as flexible working and genuine wellbeing support would be more likely to resonate with potential workers. In doing so, companies can create a positive, purposeful and attractive workplace culture that fosters employee engagement, productivity, and retention.”
