Exploring what today’s workforce really wants in a turbulent job market
In today’s hiring landscape, where budgets are tight and trust in the job seeking process is low, job seekers are weighing more than just base salary when evaluating job offers. But are they truly willing to trade compensation for equity or flexibility?
The answer? Sometimes. But only if the trade-offs are transparent, meaningful, and tailored to what today’s workforce actually values.
Remote Flexibility Still Reigns Supreme
After base salary, guaranteed remote work continues to be the most desired benefit, especially when it’s contractually protected. The flexibility to work from anywhere without sudden return-to-office mandates has become non-negotiable for many.
Equity Packages: Still a Tough Sell
While equity can be enticing, the reality is that most job seekers, especially Millennials and Gen Z, prefer guaranteed income. With inflation, childcare, and housing costs mounting, short-term financial stability wins out over long-term, uncertain rewards. For many people, the risk isn’t worth it.
Millennials & Gen Z Need More Certainty
These two generations now make up 62% of the workforce and are entering peak family-building and homeownership years. They started their careers in a recession, COVID, and are now experiencing economic instability for the second or third time since entering the workforce. Additionally, according to Deloitte, more than 60% of millennials and 70% of Gen Z live paycheck to paycheck. This includes college-educated employees.
They are far less interested in gambling on stock options and far more focused on:
- Flexible work schedules
- Comprehensive health benefits
- Predictable, steady income
- Mental health support
- Paid parental leave and vacation time
What Can Companies Do to Stay Competitive Without Raising Salaries?
Companies struggling to meet compensation demands can still win over top talent through:
- Guaranteed remote work
- Simplifying equity that provides clear, jargon-free terms, dilution disclaimers and vesting timelines up front.
- Bundle benefits: combine remote work, equity, extra PTO, or signing bonuses to create a compelling package when higher cash compensation isn’t feasible.
- Use clear salary benchmarking tools – build trust through transparency
- Improve non-cash perks: fully-covered health benefits, mental heath support, skills development, higher education reimbursement, etc.
We polled job seekers to drill down into their willingness to accept a lower base salary for guaranteed remote flexibility or a generous equity package.
- 42% would be willing to accept a lower base salary for guaranteed remote flexibility
- 28% would need equity, guaranteed remote flexibility (and more!) to accept lower cash compensation
- 25% will only accept increased pay as an option
- 4% would be willing to take a lower base salary for equity
Job seekers are feeling uncertain and defensive after months of grueling job searches. Companies will need to consider how the workforce is changing and address the very real challenges that many workers are facing today.
