75% of employees in the city enjoy their work for career growth and personal developmentIn 2018, 513,000 people were employed in the City of London which means that every 1 in 58 people in the UK work in the capital – a stat that is set to rise.
With new research finding that socialising and drinking opportunities are some of the least enjoyable things about work in the capital, employees reveal that loving their job and chances to grow personally are the reasons they like getting up for work in the morning.
A survey of 1,000 London workers by office space specialists Flexioffices, reveals that 75% of employees in the city enjoy going to work for the personal development opportunities, training and the job itself.
The research (which investigates London borough and age differences) takes a look at what 2019 employees enjoy at work and what they want from their workplace.
Results found that despite one in three enjoy going to work to see their colleagues, most don’t want to socialise with only 6% that enjoy work drinks and less than a quarter enjoying socialising.
Flexible hours are becoming an increasingly enticing aspect of a job, with 21% of London workers liking their workplace because of the flexible hours available.
The capital’s boroughs with the highest enjoyment of personal development and career growth at work are Kingston Upon Thames (56%), Harrow (67%) and City of London (52%).
These areas are also some of the lowest with flexible working opportunities with none of Harrow employees enjoying going to work for flexible hours compared to 57% in Newham.
With workers seeking more opportunities for flexible working, the demand for hot-desk style working is on the rise with a 56% increase in businesses moving to flexible office space since 2017.
A recent market report has also found that the desire for flexible workplaces was initially from creative industries but is now becoming increasingly popular by more traditional companies. This could be a great move for London companies as research proves all ages are unhappy with their office space, in particular, 45-54-year-olds of which only 8% enjoy their workspace.
Not enjoying the career progression or personal growth opportunities at work are boroughs of Hounslow (5%) Richmond (14%) and Sutton (16%) which are also some of the areas where employees are least likely to enjoy their job with only a third of Sutton employees enjoying going to work for the job.
Those who are further towards the top end of their career have been found to enjoy going to work the least. Two-thirds of 55-64-year-olds don’t enjoy their job and 18% don’t like going to work. In comparison, 41% of 18-24-year-old London workers enjoy going to work because of their job, and only 1% don’t like going to work.
With previous studies finding that millennials are heavily influenced by their workspace design, it comes as no surprise that Generation Z and Millennials are most concerned about their workplace environment. Over a third of London employees in these age brackets enjoy going to work for the office space compared to only 19% of Generation X.
Michael Dubicki, Business Director from Flexioffices commented: “The current workforce is becoming increasingly aware of the benefits of flexible working and how this can affect personal development.
“With research revealing that only a handful of employees actually enjoy the socialising events at work, getting office space and career opportunities right is crucial for business owners.”
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