This year’s Hays Poland survey shows that 90% of employees receive additional benefits, most often a medical care package, a sports card as well as integration events and trips. Additional days off and holidays are gaining popularity. Free time is assessed as more important than a series of costly benefits.

The trend of increasing the pool of available vacation days in Poland is still not very visible. On the other hand, in many countries in Europe and around the world, employers have been allowing their employees to take advantage of the increased length of leave for years. The number of vacation days also becomes an element of negotiating the terms of cooperation between a potential employee and the company. In Poland, the level of remuneration remains the most important and most frequently negotiated provision of an employment contract, while other terms and aspects of cooperation are sometimes subject to discussion.

Time is more valuable than money

For employees – especially those representing the youngest generation in the labor market – the value of free time is very high. You can see it, among others in benefits identified by employees as the most important and in a strong position of remote and flexible work in this statement. In the Hays Poland study, every third employee indicated additional days off as the most important benefit.

Taking into account the needs of employees and the growing challenges in acquiring candidates, more and more employers adjust their offer to them. Over 40% of companies offer flexible work solutions, including the possibility of taking a break during the working day to settle private obligations, remote work, or flexible time to start and finish professional tasks. One in ten employers also declares that the pool of vacation days for employees is greater than provided for in the Labor Code. Often the possibility of using an increased pool of additional days of paid leave is offered to strategic employees who in the organization struggle with the greatest pressure and dynamics of work.

Unlimited holidays are a novelty among the benefits that companies tempt their employees with. There are already organizations on the Polish market that, apart from the days off guaranteed by the Labor Code, offer their employees additional paid holidays, without any restrictions. Most often, the condition is the consent of the entire team, satisfactory work efficiency, and effective implementation of tasks.

Unlimited leave may be an increasingly common phenomenon on the labor market – emphasizes Paulina Łukaszuk, communication manager at Hays Poland. The application of such a solution, however, requires an appropriate organizational culture and structures that make employees really responsible for results and working in smaller teams treat them as their own companies. Although the idea of ​​unlimited days off seems innovative, information about its use by the best employers is reaching overseas – adds Paulina Łukaszuk.

Free from holidays

Also in this year’s Hays Poland survey, 10% of employers declare that they offer all their employees additional days off, which are not vacation days. Usually, these are days before holidays, anniversaries related to the company’s operations, but also the personal life of employees, e.g. birthdays. Increasingly, we also encounter shortened working hours on Fridays – in some companies it becomes a practice throughout the year.

Regardless of the nature of the additional free time offered to employees, communication and setting conditions remain essential. Additional leave guaranteed in the work regulations may be a bargaining chip and distinguish the company on the labor market, which is worth remembering in the era of growing recruitment challenges. Additional days off, especially for all employees, are of similar value. Appropriate emphasis on this element of the offer may be an aspect of deciding about the choice of a given employer.