A new study has identified the most appealing benefits firms can offer when creating employee packages capable of recruiting fresh talent and retaining existing staff.

According to a BeeLiked survey of 1,000 UK workers aged 30 or under, the most requested employee benefit is monetary reward. In total, 37% of respondents cited financial bonuses as the best incentive for hard work, with employees in their late 20s, female workers, and those in the Yorkshire area, particularly likely to prioritise financial incentives.

Increased paid leave allowance, additional ‘early-finish’ days and wellness related packages were found to be the second, third and fourth most popular benefits. Interestingly, respondents new to the workplace were most likely to favour these types of incentive, which suggests packages offering a good work-life balance and wellness features will be a particularly attractive proposition to the generation currently entering the jobs market.

The next most commonly cited benefits were company dinners and social events, which shows the ‘work hard play hard’ mantra remains an important element when planning company incentives. Such events can also be a successful way of creating a bond amongst team members as well as providing an important opportunity to celebrate achievements and special occasions.