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Original poster

Office perks you love?

138 replies

getawayfromme · 08/02/2022 19:53

I've always worked in genuinely shit offices - leaky air con, no natural light etc.

Then today I visited the new site I'm being moved to and it's amazing - there is a free hot chocolate station, free breakfast, free electric scooter hire and it's own roof terrace. I'm quite excited for it all.

So what are your best office perks?

OP posts:
Whitefire · 09/02/2022 00:02

Free hot drinks (I don't drink them)
I get to see rabbits out of my window.

I'm not impressed by the smug "I work at home, nothing would make me work in an office" posters. Bully for you, I can't, so I just get pleasure from seeing my colleagues drinking their free hot drinks.

Avarua · 09/02/2022 00:04

A decent coffee machine for a long black
Bike parking that is secure

AffIt · 09/02/2022 00:05

No office, no perks, but shitloads of money, for which I am grateful and happy to trade any amount of pizza Fridays or onsite shiatsu masseuses.

Avarua · 09/02/2022 00:06

I used to work in professional services in the early 2000s. There was so much money floating around they used to send us on skin holidays and conferences overseas. Whatever we asked for, we got. All changed in 2007.

Avarua · 09/02/2022 00:06

Skiing holidays. No skin holidays, that sounds a bit pervy.

ClariceQuiff · 09/02/2022 00:09

Not having to pay for heating in winter.

Air-conditioning in summer.

YellowLemonshade · 09/02/2022 00:48

Lovely bathroom with a shower and fluffy towels
Free tea, coffee and biscuits (plus treats regularly brought in by colleagues and left over from catered events)
Bottle of wine at Christmas
Free lunch on site
Beautiful buildings and surroundings
Discount in the gift shop

Judystilldreamsofhorses · 09/02/2022 00:57

Being able to print things without trailing to the corner shop and paying £1 per page.

anotherheadache · 09/02/2022 01:02

I work for the police so public sector so no free perks.. not even allowed to order post-its on the stationary order any more and my life is organised by post its! 😆

Definitely no free tea or coffee, which is fine as it's tax payers money, we all chip into the office tea fund for hot drinks/milk, but what people don't realise is that when victims/witnesses come to the station to give a statement, when your offered a hot drink, we give them out of the stuff we've bought for our office.

I'm lucky that I'm in one of the few buildings owned by our force that has aircon!

Scarby9 · 09/02/2022 01:05

When there is an event with a buffet, we can nibble at the leftovers - honestly, those are red letter days!

dipdye · 09/02/2022 01:38

Me too, with the new wfh mandate.

I've worked in loads of offices and tbh, they're never worth it. Home is better

dipdye · 09/02/2022 01:41

Bully for you, I can't, so I just get pleasure from seeing my colleagues drinking their free hot drinks.

^

Fwir point. Sorry to go on about wfh. This is actually what I do miss the most, socialising. It's the biggest factor

RainbowMum11 · 09/02/2022 02:38

Interesting comments, I have had 3 years at home - various reasons but then with the pandemic it worked brilliantly for me.
Office before - nice to have the relationships but the politics could be poisonous.
3 years at home, now I need a bit more human contact - I've managed to get a part time job which perfectly suits my skills & flexibility so I get the team/working with people again, but just 2 days in the workplace and I came do it all remotely otherwise if I want/need so I appreciate I'm lucky

RainbowMum11 · 09/02/2022 02:43

Oh, so my main point was, I am fortunate to have the best of both (am a single parent too), but the best perk of my new workplace is a proper cooked dinner when I'm working there!! Such a bonus, especially as, on the evenings my DD is with her DF, it means I don't have to cook!!!

MrsSiba · 09/02/2022 03:30

Free hot drinks
Free parking ( only one of the offices)
Free stationery
Treat box at Xmas

Office is closed between Xmas and New Year so you get a decent break without haggling with colleagues for the time off but you have to use your holiday allowance

Looking to reintroduce paid for office socials, checking if their is budget available for this

Agile working policy....3 days in, 2wfh. Best of both worlds

daisychain01 · 09/02/2022 04:21

We have been commenting this week that soon the perks of going into the office rather than wfh will be that we have heating, electricity and even a shower if we want - will help keep those home costs down (if you are near work and therefore have low commuting costs of course)

I've noticed on the 2 days per week I go into the office, how much busier it's become. I bet after April when energy costs will spike that more and more people will want to work in the office. It'll be the only way they can keep domestic energy bills down. But it doesn't work unless all members of the household are out all day.

Words · 09/02/2022 05:48

Exactly @CantHaveTooMuchChocolate.

I struggled with meno during my last two years in the office and it was hell. Heated to around 28 degrees, with people sitting there first thing before the heating had reached the max, shivering theatrically in flimsy blouses. Awful.

Hawkins001 · 09/02/2022 06:06

Tea and coffee,

JufusMum · 09/02/2022 06:26

Free parking.
Uhm….a fridge?
I work for the NHS Grin

sashh · 09/02/2022 06:31

@Crackercrazy

Free tea and coffee, the occasional biscuit, but that’s about it. Very envious of all these free breakfasts and lunches!
One school I worked in breakfast was free and compulsory for students and teachers. You didn't have to eat but you had to take 'your' class to the dining room.

It was a pain in the ass, you couldn't get any work done before breakfast because all the kids cared about was, "what time is breakfast?" it was on a rota so a different time each day.

Undertheoldlindentree · 09/02/2022 07:07

Public sector. Practically perkless (beyond annual leave and pension). Paid for our own drinks and snacks from expensive vending machines or made our own. Had to pay £100 per month to park on the premises. Paid for own Christmas meals, work socialising etc. Pretty standard with public money!

Spud1130 · 09/02/2022 07:50

I have my own parking space in the very small and very limited car park. I feel like I've made it in life Grin

HarrietOh · 09/02/2022 07:51

Sort of public sector (HE) - no office perks really, even pay for parking.
Love that we can now mix with WFH. That’s definitely been the best perk of my working life to date.

user1471457354 · 09/02/2022 09:47

In my previous job, the company would pay for a masseuse to come into the office once a week and provide staff with head, neck and shoulders massage......I really miss those!

DinkBoo · 09/02/2022 10:57

None.

Well, I guess I have access to a sink and a fridge. Hardly any colleagues around any more now (uni, so most people are still staying home unless they have to be in to teach). We used to get a paid Christmas do, and occasional perks, and free food after catered events (which died out). Used to have weekly department socials (self-funded, but still!) but noone has time now.

If we work a Saturday open day (unpaid, not voluntary), we don't even get a free lunch as they order in individual meal boxes for parents and potential students, but nothing for the staff.

I used to go in at least 5 days a week, now I also only go in for teaching, as it is so depressing sitting alone in an empty department.

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