Graduate jobs offer fewest UK workplace perks, study finds

By Daniel Okafor

Graduate training and internships advertised just 39 perks per 100 UK job adverts, the lowest rate among 37 industries in an analysis of more than 8,700 vacancies. The legal industry averaged 163 perks per 100, more than four times the graduate rate.

Reward Gateway | Edenred scored each industry by workplace perks (non-salary rewards) advertised per 100 jobs sampled, including private healthcare, pensions, bonuses, flexible working and extra holiday. Across more than 8,700 UK adverts in 37 industries, it asked whether sectors with many openings were doing enough to attract candidates. The report sets no new employer obligation; its relevance is operational.

Chris Britton, People Experience Director at Reward Gateway | Edenred, put the central tension plainly:

“There’s a persistent assumption that a strong salary will always win the war for talent, but our research tells a more nuanced story, with industries like the charity sector offering some of the best perks alongside an average salary.”

“Pay might get a candidate’s attention, but benefits, flexibility and wellbeing are increasingly what make them stay at companies for many years to come.”

Where does candidate pressure hit hardest?

The Institute of Student Employers puts an average UK graduate role at around 140 applications. Competition reaches about 205 applications per digital or IT role, 188 in financial and professional services, and more than 200 in media and law.

With so many applicants, employers face little pressure to sweeten job offers. Apparently, competition can make restraint look like strategy. For HR teams, the decision is whether a benefits package can still differentiate an offer when each vacancy already attracts intense interest.

What can a site-based employer offer?

Manufacturing ranked second-lowest at 58.98 perks per 100 jobs. The report points to the constraints of site-based roles, which limit flexible, remote or hybrid options. ONS data also places manufacturing among the industries least likely to offer hybrid working (a mix of office and remote work).

Other research cited in the report finds that 47% of manufacturers pay a premium for permanent night shifts. That suggests a different route to recognition: cash tied to the working pattern may offset a narrower benefits menu. For HR teams, the choice is not copying an office policy, but testing what a shift-based workforce values.

Is engineering a recruitment problem?

Engineering ranked third from bottom and had 6,975 live roles (currently open), the highest vacancy count among the 37 sectors. It recorded 59.13 perks per 100 jobs, while 76% of engineering employers said they struggled to recruit key roles.

The report asks whether underused benefits offerings could help a sector that needs more talent. Its cited evidence puts the problem squarely in access to the right skillsets. Benefit design therefore sits inside engineering’s skills strategy, rather than serving as a separate rewards exercise.

Which sectors offer the most?

• Legal: The sector led with 163 perks per 100 jobs. Separate research cited in the report says 93% of UK law firms pay pension contributions above the statutory minimum and 96% offer private medical insurance. The report describes benefits-led competition for talent and retention, including non-financial wellbeing support.
• Accountancy: Second for perks and highest paying of all 37 sectors, with an average salary of £61,265. Accounting and finance technicians rank among the country’s 10 most critically in-demand occupations. The report says scarce, easily poached talent makes strong benefits matter as much as pay in attracting candidates.
• Charity: Third with 157 perks per 100 jobs and a salary around the middle of the table. Charities often cannot match higher corporate pay, so they compete through non-financial benefits instead.

Can benefits compete with higher pay?

Charity employers often offer 25 to 34 days’ holiday, flexible hours and sabbaticals (extended leave). Season-ticket loans and cycle-to-work schemes also feature; the report describes these as largely cost-neutral to charities but highly valued by staff.

Britton’s distinction is measured, but the implication is not subtle: pay can secure attention, while flexibility and wellbeing may matter more after a candidate starts. Employers in sectors with the deepest vacancy problems need to decide which benefits address the constraint they actually face.

The forward test for engineering, manufacturing and graduate recruiting is whether stronger or better-used benefits can improve attraction and retention while advertised perk rates remain at 59.13, 58.98 and 39 per 100 jobs.