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Work-life balance, not pay, biggest factor for Irish job seekers
Work-life balance is now the number one influence for Irish professionals when they are seeking a new job, research has found.
The study also revealed that nearly six in every ten applicants would refuse a job offer if they had a negative experience during the recruitment process.
The Future of Recruitment survey, carried out by IrishJobs along with Boston Consulting Group and The Network, had 90,000 global respondents, 955 of whom were professionals in this country.
The research found pay was the second most important factor for Irish workers when job hunting, followed by a flexible work location and/or work schedule.
Three our of every four said their ideal career path was a stable career, coupled with a good work-life balance.
“The research shows that, increasingly, people work to live, not live to work, and, while a negative recruitment experience can dissuade a lot of people from accepting a job offer, work-life balance is still the number one deal-breaker for Irish professionals,” said Sam McIlveen, general manager, IrishJobs.ie.
“Therefore, employers need to ensure that corporate culture is up to the expectations of modern jobseekers.”
“Increased salary and higher seniority may be enough to attract candidates – but what they look for in the longer term is good work-life balance and flexibility.”
41% of those people in Ireland who took part said they would refuse a job offer due to an employer’s lack of flexibility to match the jobseeker’s needs.
But when it comes to convincing them to take a role, just over two-thirds said that an employer could motivate them to take the offer by being open to negotiation.
While a little over half said they could be persuaded by being offered a tour of the workplace, or by being given the space and time to decide.
“From outdated hiring tools to lengthy delays, it’s clear that workers face many frustrations throughout the talent recruitment process,” said Mr McIlveen.
“It’s important, therefore, for Irish employers to get it right because a negative experience for jobseekers during the recruitment process is a major reason for Irish professionals to refuse an otherwise attractive job offer, something which will have a knock-on impact on an employer’s talent attraction and acquisition goals.”
Nearly half of respondents said salary or financial compensation is what they seek out first in a job ad, followed by location and whether the role offers remote work.
Of those seeking a new position almost one in three are looking for a more interesting role or higher seniority, while a quarter said they want to explore a different occupation.
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