The new perks: Flextime and self-development

Fitness, fresh fruit, sumptuous lunch arrangements and health insurance are just part of the fringe benefits that companies use to lure job-seeking technical and scientific staff. Well-being and health have long been natural themes used to capture the interest of job seekers.

Recent years have shown clear increases in the proportion of IDA members who enjoy benefits, but this trend has only just begun. The high demand for qualified staff within IT, technology and the natural sciences is why the heavy artillery is now being employed in the battle for graduates.

»It is not always enough to offer double-sized pay cheques and company fitness schemes if you want to compete for the best graduates,« explains Juliane Marie Neiiendam, chairperson of the Employees’ Council [Ansattes Råd], which is part of IDA. Job seekers especially demand self-development and time off during working hours, which will be the greatest attractions in the labour market of the future, the chairperson emphasises.

More opportunities for further training and personal objectives

Among other things, this includes guaranteeing constant employee development – both personally and professionally. Focusing on strengthening their expertise is a primary objective for many IDA members. But it also strengthens companies to send employees to courses. The recognition of this is what makes more companies offer their employees upgrades.

»We hear about more companies that offer continuing training to their employees,« says Juliane Neiiendam.

»Companies are aware that a bachelor’s or master’s degree is not enough for an entire career, the way things develop today. It requires continuing training to keep up with technological trends and progress.«

Many IDA members, young and old, also prioritise that their employer has great significance for society. They want their work to contribute to something greater. Therefore, it is important that companies give their employees the opportunity to act out some personal objectives through their work. For example, fighting for a good cause, but also with regard to personal dreams, adds Juliane Marie Neiiendam.

Leave and working from abroad

Thus, the chairperson of the Employees’ Council [Ansattes Råd] predicts that the possibility to replace the boring framework of the office with a week’s working holiday surrounded by swimming pools and deck chairs will be greater. The opportunity to work from where you want to will, in short, increase. In this way, each year, some people may work for a week from Malaga, Spain, or from the Caribbean islands in the Atlantic Ocean, with the boss’s blessing.

»You can easily work across borders. We already have Danish members who work from Germany. The global labour market will continue to expand,« the chairperson for he Employees’ Council points out. There are already good tools for holding online meetings, but the digital tools will become even better, she points out.

Similarly, more people will have the opportunity to travel on leave. In connection with the increasing attention to self-realisation, it seems obvious that companies should give their employees opportunities to live out their dreams. Juliane Marie Neiiendam also expects that the proportion of IDA members who will be offered flexible working hours or days when they work from home will also grow.

Understanding bosses is the future 

Figures from IDA show that the three biggest reasons why IDA members change jobs are lack of professional progress, poor management and poor working environment.

»It is important to our members to have a manager who they can trust and who trusts them,« says Juliane Marie Neiiendam and adds:

»Workers are now the focal point, and therefore personal development, flexible working frameworks and time off during the working day will be more common in the future.«