Randstad report reveals work-life balance remains the motivating factor for Kiwi workers
Work-life balance is still the main motivating factor for the Kiwi workforce as Randstad reveals New Zealand’s most desirable places to work.
Randstad has today released their 2022 Employer Brand Research. 4,276 New Zealanders responded to the survey which explores NZ workers' perceptions of employer brands and gives businesses a unique insight into what is driving employees and job seekers during the talent squeeze.
Work-life balance is at the top of the list of desires for Kiwi jobseekers, surpassing salary, and benefit expectations for the second year in a row. “Salary has always been really prominent as a key driver so for it to be knocked off for the second time is quite staggering,” said Country Director at Randstad New Zealand, Richard Kennedy
Interestingly, entering the number three spot for the first time, Kiwi’s prioritised training and development – 67% said they would be very likely to stay with their current employer if reskilling and upskilling opportunities were on offer to them.
“I think there’s a ceiling in terms of the salary pressure and interest rate pressure, so business leaders are going to need to look at their employee value proposition around flexible working, personal development, diversity, and inclusion, to bring to the fore, what they are doing for their employees to highlight and incentivise them and to draw people to them as an employer of choice over their competition,” Kennedy told HRD.
Kennedy uses the real-life example of a recent candidate who was offered a big salary to move organisations, but instead of taking the money he savvily negotiated a comprehensive and structured learning and development program with his current employer to get to the next stage of his career.
“With the pandemic creating job turmoil across the board, many Kiwis spent time reprioritising what was most important. For some, this meant changing roles or where they lived, for others it meant a career reset, involving further study or on-the-job training,” said Kennedy.
The brain-drain
50,000 Kiwis under 30 are expected to leave the country over the coming months, putting more pressure on employers trying to hire from an already depleted talent pool.
Ian Scott, General Manager of Randstad New Zealand says employers need to be more creative with their employment value proposition (EVP) and think about what else they can offer to drive employee satisfaction, engagement, retention, and loyalty.
At Randstad, flexible working includes the ability to work from another city or country for an extended period of time which is hugely beneficial for employees wanting to reconnect with family or experience working abroad.
It’s going to be important for leaders to have open honest conversations around efficiencies, accountabilities and expectations and to have flexibility in the framework but within reason of the expectations of the business as well.
Inter-generational differences in the workplace
With five generations in the workforce, employee desires can be variable across the age spectrum, and Randstad’s report reflects those inter-generational differences.
The workforce’s newest entrants, Gen Zs prioritise good training, millennials want work-life balance, for older kiwi’s a nice place to work is the most important.
New Zealand’s most desirable employers
The pandemic has highlighted how important NZs essential service workers are to the country, government agencies and essential service providers featured strongly in the most desirable employers.
Education provider, Evolve Education Group took out the top spot, being recognised for its job security, interesting job content, and financial health.
Bev Davies, General Manager of People and Talent at Evolve Education Group NZ comments, “At Evolve we absolutely know that it’s our people who create the magic; it’s our people, who make a significant and meaningful difference for our tamariki, families and whanau every single day. And so, it is important to us to consider what we can do to support our teams, especially during very challenging circumstances - and then deliver on this.”
Top 10 most attractive industry sectors
- Early learning
- Tertiary education
- Central government
- Professional Services
- Public Sector
- Information Technology & telecommunications
- Media
- Transport & logistics
- Healthcare
- FMCG
Top employer to work for in New Zealand
- Evolve Education Group
- Department of Conservation
- Ventia
- Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment
- NZ Customs Service
- Green Cross Health
- WSP
- Healthcare of New Zealand
- AsureQuality Limited
- Department of Internal Affair
