Flexible hours top workers' wish listReport from the UK Telegraph Newspaper (Filed: 02/01/2003)Forget company cars, free gym membership and even a £1,000 a year pay rise - what will really make workers happy is being able to come in and go home when they want. Nearly one in three employees would prefer flexible working hours to a variety of other perks and incentives, a major survey has discovered. A recruitment website, reed.co.uk, polled 4,815 workers for a Department of Trade and Industry campaign to balance home life with working hours. Offered a choice of extras, nearly half would go for flexible hours while just one in 10 wanted a company car and one in 14 would take free gym membership. Given a straight choice, about a third would still take better hours over a £1,000 pay rise. Parents in particular - nearly eight in 10 - say flexibility is the biggest factor in whether or not to take a new job when it is offered. The Government will this month launch a publicity campaign about new employment rights, which come into effect in April. They include better pay and holiday conditions for new parents and measures to encourage firms to offer more flexible working hours for those who need them most. Patricia Hewitt, the Trade and Industry secretary, said: "This poll shows that getting a better work-life balance is becoming much more important for all employees. "The best businesses are already switched on to this."
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