Work perks: What SA businesses are offering to make you take the job

From dog days to stocked fridges or gaming rooms, booming work perks are enticing new employees. Here’s what’s on offer in SA – but is that what you should be looking for?

From in-house yoga studios to supplied breakfast and pool tables, South Australian businesses are pulling out the stops to entice workers in a fiercely competitive job market.

Latest figures show a workers’ market, with the state’s unemployment rate at its second-lowest since records began in the 1970s and a record 594,400 South Australians with full-time jobs.

Entrée Recruitment CEO Megan Nicholson said “the fruit basket was just not cutting it anymore” as the Covid pandemic forced businesses to review what they were offering employees.

“The whole thing about, ‘You’re lucky to have a job’ – that’s not enough anymore for people, they want the bells and whistles,” Ms Nicholson said.

“People now have options and the benefits can tell a bit about their workplace culture.”

Flexible working arrangements, employee wellness programs and signing bonuses were among the most common trends when it came to work perks, Ms Nicholson said.

Wellness perks could include employee assistance programs with access to psychologists and counsellors, gym programs, yoga classes or flu shots and health check-ups.

Ms Nicholson said some businesses were also offering fully stacked fridges filled with lunches and snacks or allowing dogs in the office.

Financial services firm Perks is among the businesses stepping up employee benefits at its newly renovated Flinders Street office.

The venue features a rooftop entertainment area – which includes a pool table – and is where the company’s social club hosts events such as in-house staff drinks and nibbles on Friday nights.

Accounting firm Perks says its social environment is key to happy workers. Picture: Dean Martin

Engineering firm Tonkin offers table tennis and a gaming station to encourage employees to "take five".

BHP’s Adelaide office inside the old GPO building features a wellness studio and games room. Picture: Sam Wundke

Perks also hosts monthly events for employees such as lawn bowls, wine tasting, quiz nights, 10-pin bowling and ice-skating.

“I think the social environment we have here at Perks is a large part of why most people want to come into work each day,” Perks social club representative Steve Martin said.

“The new office and our move into the city, where there is no shortage of close-by shopping or lunch options, has also contributed.”

Engineering firm Tonkin encourages its employees to “take five” during a busy day, with a table tennis table, bean bags and gaming station at its East End digs.

Workers are also offered flexible working hours, 3pm Friday finishes and a $250 per quarter wellness voucher to be spent on any wellness activity.

PR firm Michels Warren offers an “open dog policy” for employees to bring their four-legged friends to the office, while mining giant BHP’s Adelaide office – last year deemed “the best in the world” – has a wellness studio and games room.

Closer to the sporting world, Adelaide Oval offers its workers yearly massages and health checks, activations around the ground such as ‘Turf Talk’ – lawn tips from Head Curator Damian Hough – and staff offers at the Oval Hotel.

PR firm Michels Warren has an "open dog" policy, encouraging employees to bring in their furry friends. Picture: Supplied

Adelaide Oval employees learning from the best, with lawn tips by Head Curator Damian Hough.

But while perks can be an enticing part of the workplace offer, Ms Nicholson said overall culture should always be a priority for employers.

“If you don’t have the culture there, no-one’s gonna go there for reasons of bonuses or the bells and whistles,” she said.

“If (the job) doesn’t align with their values, you’d think that no amount of salary would make a difference.”

Senior Project Officer at the Australian Industrial Transformation Institute Gemma Beale also warned prospective employees not to take coffee machines and pool tables in lieu of tangible employment benefits.

“While wages stagnate and the cost of living continues to rise, I would be sceptical of anything that’s not higher wages, better working conditions or better leave entitlements,” Ms Beale said.

She urged workers to be wary of employers who try to blur the line between work and social life, warning it could lead to longer hours or more difficulty speaking up about workplace issues.

“It might be really pleasant to have drinks or a table tennis table in the office, but where are the lines of work and social life?” she said.

“In some offices, we’ve heard that you can get your lunch delivered, for example. That might be great on rainy days, but it’s also important to leave the office for lunch sometimes.”

“While a decent in-house coffee machine is great, I would be looking specifically at wages, paid leave entitlements and your general working conditions.”