Whilst most of the working Irish population would be thrilled with a decent pension scheme and the occasional work night out, some of our UK counterparts are clearly having a wild time with their perks of the job.
A new UK survey from Glassdoor has found that over a third of people (34%) consider the little extras that come with a gig to be the most important consideration before accepting. With that in mind, the recruitment website has pulled together a list of the British employers that have gone to the greatest lengths to keep their staff happy.
In no particular order, the top 20 quirkiest perks Glassdoor could find...
- Hotjar won't just let you work from home, they'll throw you €4,000 in funds to build your own ideal office space off-premises.
- TransferWise doesn't mind their staff getting steamy in a professional context – their built-in office sauna is available to all employees.
- BrewDog keep on brand to offer employees 'paid puppy leave' – a weeklong holiday so you can get your new canine companion settled in at home. of paid holiday to help their dogs settle in.
- Winton Capital Management employs a “food evangelist” to make sure everybody has work grub tailormade to their nutritional needs.
- If Jedi is your religion and "Winter is coming" is your family motto, you'll love working at price comparison website Money.co.uk. The price comparison website decided to go all retro (read: medieval) by moving their staff into a renovated castle with a Star Wars-themed cinema room. Oh, and there's a Rolling Stones-themed bathroom to boot.
- VisitBritain employees receive free West End theatre tickets and the tourist board also facilitates regular trips to new attractions and events across the nation. Which, in fairness, shouldn't be too much of a stretch for them considering their line of business and list of partnerships in the entertainment sector.
- Going one step further, Cloudreach takes all its employees out of the country altogether. Their "secret holidays" across Europe and North America give them an opportunity to look at the business year ahead and, let's face it, have a great laugh.
- ZPG offer employees interest free loans for home improvements or even weddings.
- WorldFirst has an arcade machine boasting a host of classic games.
- Phoenix Partnership takes its workers on annual sailing trips to glamorous locations across the world.
- JustEat gives employees free food and drink every Friday with a resident DJ spinning the decks so that they can dance the evening away at the office.
- Buzzfeed UK gets some of "the best British musical talent" to perform in the office every Thursday.
- Yell offers an uncapped commission structure, a kind of all-you-can-earn work buffet approach to business.
- Harrods gives staff 33% discount on all items and a 50% reduction for business attire. Not too unheard of in retail, but notable giving the steep prices in the iconic London department store.
- Facebook fully supports family planning, with assistance for adoption or surrogacy and "baby cash" to help with newborn expenses.
- Qubit is a big data startup with a zen approach to getting that work-life balance just right. It offers weekly yoga, meditation and pilates classes.
- ZPG offer employees interest free loans for home improvements or even weddings.
- WorldFirst has an arcade machine boasting a host of classic games.
- Phoenix Partnership takes its workers on annual sailing trips to glamorous locations across the world.
- Mind Gym supplies employees with cocktails every Friday.
- Expedia UK supplies employees with a "wellness allowance" of anything between £400-£1200 to spend on fitness related items of their choice such as running shoes, gym memberships and sports clubs.
- UKFast gives one extra week paid leave when employees get married and £10,000 bonus for ten years’ service to the business.
- Smarkets believes in a "self-management structure", which means you can come into work whenever you want and decide for yourself what you fancy working on. In between all that independent graft, its London HQ has a full-time team of chefs cooking you breakfast, lunch and dinner daily.