As the competition for talent heats up, more and more companies are offering their staff impressive work perks like annual travel stipends and complimentary cleaners.
Here are just some of the unusual work perks that caught our attention this week.
Employee sabbaticals, CLIF bars.
Sabbaticals aren’t just for academics. CLIF bars offer employees up to two months off to recharge and spend time in nature. Employees can use the time to take a once in a lifetime trip or just catch up with their families.
The well-known brand is passionate about employee health. Staff can avail of free fitness classes at the company’s gym, clamber up the on-site rock-climbing wall during their break or even spend 2.5 hours a week exercising during working hours. Who fancies a TRX meeting?
Free day off on your birthday, SAS
For years, SAS has topped the list of the best places to work. The company’s head office is in Cary, North Carolina but they also have regional offices in Marlow, England, and Dublin, Ireland. SAS offers employees so many perks it will almost make your head spin. Some of our favourites include, a free day off on your birthday, concierge service, games rooms, pitch and put golf courses, company firework displays, dry cleaning service and a subsidised canteen.
HR Director for SAS UK and Ireland, Belinda Macaulay, believes their perks are the key to attracting the best talent.
”The technology sector is very competitive, particularly in our field which is data analytics, as demand for data scientists is outstripping supply. We know that candidates, once interested based on the basic benefits package, will look at all the other benefits when choosing where to work as it can be a strong indicator of the overall company culture.
Secondly we also really value our existing workforce. As well as the traditional benefits people normally expect from employers, SAS offers an exceptional work environment. We know that it’s about more than just retaining employees. We want to provide an environment and culture where they feel proud to work for SAS and are motivated to achieve in their roles and benefit from the opportunities before them. SAS has always been about each and every employee feeling valued and inspired.”
Overnight breast milk shipping, Zillow
This is definitely one of the most unusual work perks that we’ve ever heard of. Zillow will ship breastmilk overnight for mums that are travelling for work. After realising this was a primary concern for their working mums the company stood up and did something about it and we have to applaud them for their forward-thinking. Zillow employees also benefit from free food, complete health coverage and matching generous parental leave.
Company Beer, Threadless
T-shirt design company Threadless really goes above and beyond for its staff members. Every Monday morning they bring breakfast into the office to help get the week off to a good start. The office is totally dog-friendly and Threadstaffers are even given an annual stipend for health/fitness membership. If exercise isn’t your game don’t worry. The Threadless kitchen always has a full keg of the company’s very own brand of beer, Threadless IPA. Now that’s dedication.
Elizabeth Schmidt, the company’s Digital Marketing Director believes that these benefits help boost staff morale.
”These perks are very important to us to ensure our teams are happy, healthy and excited to come to work each week…We have a very special culture here at Threadless and many of our employees have worked here for 7 years or longer!”
