What's the best company perk that you get, and do you still appreciate it?

heartychat on 21/05/2015 - 15:18
Last edited 23/05/2015 - 11:41

At my first job, we had a free soft drink machine (one of our main clients was Coca Cola and I think they arranged and stocked it for us). This seemed like heaven to me, and so I remember indulging in three cans a day for at least two weeks. After that, I dropped down to only one can a day and didn't really think about it again.

Another time, I did a project at a cigarette manufacturing company, and each month you could take all the cigarettes you wanted to, as long as it was for your own personal usage. I didn't even smoke, but that didn't stop me from trying.

Education & Work

Comments

        • johnno07 on 24/05/2015 - 20:08

          @scotty: Need to change to that other type of coke. Then you'll have

          workProduced = hoursWorked ^ cokeInhaled

    • Islund on 23/05/2015 - 23:35
      +1

      Coke from a vending machine - is that legal?

  • Ughhh on 21/05/2015 - 19:59
    +36

    This makes me sad. I need a new job :(

  • Johnnyratbastard on 21/05/2015 - 20:06
    +5

    We have a large coffee machine and we periodically have baristas hired to give lessons to office newbs. Massages once a month. Friday beer fridge and soft drinks while they last. Day off every year on your anniversary of starting, half day on your birthday. Reasonable perks, ad agency.

    • PVA on 21/05/2015 - 20:14

      does it make up for the extreme hours you need to work (after hours, no extra money just pizza etc)

      also it would want to be good to make you feel ok about the rubbish stretched truth advertised of products :)

      • Johnnyratbastard on 21/05/2015 - 20:31
        +1

        There are some weeks where it's a lot of hours, but It's an environment where people like what they do and pull together amazingly when the shit hits the fan.

        I can also fairly honestly say that there's not much stretching of truth with our clients, which helps the conscience.

        • PVA on 21/05/2015 - 20:40
          +2

          I know someone in the industry , sound like they do much the same as you.

          i hope no text like Clinically Tested then?

          Or No added XX when no company or brand uses XX, just trying to make customers think other brands do.

          Or new recipe/packaging (but no mention the size has been reduced)…
          :)

          those type of un-truths - not lying but inferring something.

        • Johnnyratbastard on 21/05/2015 - 21:06

          @PVA:

          Nope, none of those claims have anything to do with our client base. We have made a comparison between some of our brands and others, but they are always fully legally substantiated before they see the light of day.

        • PVA on 21/05/2015 - 21:17
          +4

          @Johnnyratbastard:
          well done, and thanks, keep it honest..

          still remember listerine saying something like cleans better than brushing alone - the brushing meant brushing your teeth with only water, no toothpaste! i guess legally OK but not many people brush with only water and most people would think brushing alone involves toothpaste.

    • swiggity swag on 21/05/2015 - 20:18
      +1

      Happy endings?

  • dasher86 on 21/05/2015 - 20:09
    +4

    I used to work in group of private members club.
    I used to get free lunch (cooked by the chefs) when i was on working on site.
    The occasional free drinks when the bars were tendering their stock or getting free stock from suppliers.
    Soft opening restaurant specials - 90% off the bill.
    Free membership to all the private member clubs.
    Free movie sessions at the members cinema.
    Once a year instead of having a Christmas party we got invited to the music festival the company hosted yearly - got to see the likes of Aloe blacc, rizzle kicks, lana del rey, basement jaxx perform for free. A full day of free alcohol and food - lobster, steak, oysters etc.

    • hahaboy on 24/05/2015 - 10:18

      these sound like great perks.

  • ThePunchingBag on 21/05/2015 - 20:11
    +1

    I worked at Melbourne Airport, we were owned by Qantas & Australia Post. I was there for over 13 years & we never got cheap flights as were classed by Qantas, as a freight company. Left 2 years ago, my brother still works there. They now get the cheap flights. They pay 10% of the airfare.
    Example - $94 return from Darwin. $250 Return from UK.
    You travel on Stand By but as long as you don't go during the peak period, normally no dramas.
    I'm so envious of my brother now :-(

    • Forenti on 21/05/2015 - 21:36
      +1

      Sounds like Australian air Express to me ;)

  • PVA on 21/05/2015 - 20:22
    +46

    we get toilet paper in the toilets, sometimes.

    not joking either once called as the toilet in one building had none, was told the monthly allowance had been used up.

    • syousef on 22/05/2015 - 13:51
      +3

      I doubt that's legal.

      • PVA on 22/05/2015 - 14:12

        you would think so - staff in the office towers complain that the coffee provided isnt nice enough etc, and field staff are flat out having toilet paper in the toilets (plus any furniture that gets broken over the years is not replaced - so some places have zero furniture), I am sure it is

        • syousef on 22/05/2015 - 14:15
          +5

          I live in NSW. This one is for Victoria. It is a worksafe issue.

          https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/…
          Facilities for toilets
          53. Toilets provided by employers need to be equipped with:
          • an adequate supply of toilet paper for each toilet
          • hand washing facilities consistent with the requirements of this
          compliance code
          • rubbish bins
          • adequate and hygienic means for disposing of sanitary items for toilets
          used by female employees.

    • nikey2k27 on 23/05/2015 - 07:35
      +2

      That sound like my old woolworth boss to get award he ran the store into the ground he got his 10,000 cash for be under. toilet paper we had none. big boss came and fired him best day.

  • battler on 21/05/2015 - 20:44
    +1

    reward gateway -same as cashrewards, but better percentages

  • [Deactivated] on 21/05/2015 - 20:50
    +1

    I work in the health field, our hospital use to provide tea and coffee, then cut it
    They use to provide the age and the herald sun (per unit) and the cut the age
    Toilet paper use to be 2 ply and now it's barely 1 ply
    All because of budget cuts, small things.
    At least we still have free parking.

    • liquid metal on 21/05/2015 - 21:11
      +10

      Fold it 3 times and you have 3 ply

      • idonteven on 22/05/2015 - 00:55
        +2

        Actually fold it twice to get 3 ply. Three folds gets you 4 ply.

        • dd721411 on 22/05/2015 - 01:10
          +1

          Fold it twice -> 4 plies to be exact

        • idonteven on 22/05/2015 - 02:37
          +2

          @721411: this is assuming he isn't folding the same sheet of toilet paper but each new sheet wt the serration.

        • dd721411 on 25/05/2015 - 14:03
          -1

          @idonteven: That's because you use the Z method. Fold a piece of paper in the Z shape then you get a new 3-ply sheet. But I use the W or double V method instead. I fold my paper in V shape twice to get a 4-ply sheet.

          Hints: I'm an Origami enthusiast.

          Anyway, why do we keep talking $#!+ here?

    • bargdebarg on 22/05/2015 - 07:45
      +5

      I like where this thread is going

    • voldemart on 23/05/2015 - 21:51

      TBH I am more concerned about the fact that the age was cut instead of the herald sun.

  • dlakers3peat on 21/05/2015 - 20:56

    50% or more of hotels worldwide with free wifi. Eg stayed at crown metropol in the executive room with city views for only $199 per night.

    • dlakers3peat on 21/05/2015 - 23:44
      +2

      I also received a free ipad air 128gb with 12gb of data to use every month for free. Can even go over the 12gb and it still works. I get to travel interstate at least once every 3 months and overseas once a year and i have amex card to use for taxis and other work related expenses.

      You should start another thread on the tighest thing your company does. Mine, no tea or coffee or milk and i work for a multi billion dollar company.

    • alizzan on 22/05/2015 - 13:20
      +17

      As a side note, hotels need to stop this "pay for Wi-Fi" business. It's ridiculous. It's 2015 - if I can go to McDonalds and get free Wi-Fi, I should be able to stay at a $200-a-night hotel and get free Wi-Fi.

  • SilentX on 21/05/2015 - 21:11
    +33

    I'm a teacher. 12 weeks holidays per year is pretty hard to beat.

    • OzzyOzbourne on 21/05/2015 - 22:23
      +7

      although I bet those long hours 9-3pm each day are a bit of a drag.

      • Geewhizz on 22/05/2015 - 06:35
        +10

        You ARE kidding that you think they actually work those hours, aren't you? There is a lot of work involved outside those hours.

        • bargdebarg on 22/05/2015 - 07:45

          Reports!

        • humdogg on 22/05/2015 - 14:57
          +1

          @bargdebarg:

          so hard to ctrl + C, ctrl + V, Find and Replace names!

          or maybe that was just my lazy ass teachers.

        • [Deactivated] on 22/05/2015 - 16:19

          Which probably add up to match the 9-5:30pm most people work…

        • bargdebarg on 22/05/2015 - 16:52
          +2

          @woolfenstein: my wife is a teacher and after school is normally meetings, planning and sometimes parent teacher interviews. THAT takes her to about 5,30 on average. On top of that, reports for 28 twice a year.

        • mskeggs on 22/05/2015 - 21:52
          +5

          @bargdebarg:

          I am sympathetic to teachers, but very few office jobs are 9-5 anymore. We are all working unpaid overtime and doing work at home too, on top of our longer regular hours.

        • gimli on 22/05/2015 - 22:06
          +2

          @mskeggs:

          i am 730am to 730pm on a good day. qq

          and i only get free tap water

        • bargdebarg on 22/05/2015 - 22:58

          @mskeggs: how does the pay compare though?

        • mskeggs on 23/05/2015 - 12:50
          +5

          @bargdebarg:
          I left after completing my teaching degree to get a pay cut in the IT industry. I was earning more than a teacher after 3 years.
          I lived with a teacher and still socialise with plenty and I worked longer hours, but I accept there is plenty of time dedicated teachers spend outside of face to face. The teachers I know now working long hours are the workaholics dedicated to their classes and the very new teachers who haven't built up a library of resources they can use and reuse. Yeah, reports are a slog, but so is end-of-month in most industries, for example.
          I still miss the holidays 20 years later, however.
          I reckon the easiest rejoinder to people complaining teachers have it easy is to advise them to try it out. If the pay and conditions are so sweet, they should jump at the chance. You have to be pretty dedicated to face a bunch of kids day in day out and there isn't a cushy place to hide if you need a break like most office jobs allow from time to time.

      • Cyphar on 22/05/2015 - 10:03
        +8

        People still believe this? I quit teaching because not only was I working 8 - 5, but I had no weekends either as I had to do class prep, assess assignments & tests, etc which led to my relationship with my own kids being hampered.

        (profanity) those who think teaching is a cushy, 30 hour, 40 week job.

        • [Deactivated] on 22/05/2015 - 16:20
          -4

          Some people are so inefficient.

        • stringbean402 on 23/05/2015 - 10:51
          -1

          @woolfenstein:

          Agreed !

      • syousef on 22/05/2015 - 13:53
        +8

        …and that ladies and gentlemen is why we have 21 year olds who can't spell or do math teaching our kids. What was once a well respected profession is now given the respect of glorified unskilled babysitting.

      • SilentX on 22/05/2015 - 22:30
        +2

        I don't entertain those opinions. It's a great way to troll teachers though.

      • rawm on 23/05/2015 - 14:52
        +2

        Biggest fallacy there is. I'm also a teacher (VIC, Secondary) and work from 7:45am - 4:30pm 5 days per week (approx 8.5hrs a day, not including report writing) with possibly 30mins off during the day if lucky. 12 weeks is nice, but necessary!

    • Nutrino on 21/05/2015 - 23:39
      +11

      I envy anyone who has the nerves to teach school kids in this age.

      • scrimshaw on 21/05/2015 - 23:45
        +15

        The teaching is not the hard part. The hard part comes when the parents and the system puts pressure on you to teach dumbass kids yet expect them to come out with outstanding grades.

        • Cyphar on 22/05/2015 - 10:05

          IMO, it's not the teaching or the parents that are tough. It's the constant paperwork.

    • JimB on 22/05/2015 - 09:34

      I always hear how teachers have it so bad…. good to see some perspective.

    • congo on 24/05/2015 - 17:30

      My wife is a teacher, without the 12 weeks holidays she would go insane..

    • Shwayne on 24/05/2015 - 17:51

      Yeah totally a holiday with no lesson plans and marking involved.

    • WT on 25/05/2015 - 16:13

      Ms Anderson?!?!

  • Lunchtime on 21/05/2015 - 21:14
    +3

    overseas trip once a year

  • [Deactivated] on 21/05/2015 - 21:22
    +5

    All the perks at my company are just corporate back scratching between different company execs. We get "reduced rate" gym - which is really the normal price, "reduced rate" removalists - normal price, "huge discounts on these cars from these dealers, but you can't haggle further" - barely below sticker…

    Oh we get a flu shot once a year for free.

  • smpantsonfire on 21/05/2015 - 21:27
    +5

    When I managed Maccas, free whatever. Still a size 30 around the pants, thank you metabolism! This was a great perk, saved a ton of money on food expenses. It' wasn't all unhealthy, the McCafe stuff, sandwiches, rolls etc.

  • Talonparty on 21/05/2015 - 21:53
    +8

    I used to work in a Brumbys bakery and when I cooked the jam donuts I was allowed to cook myself extra ones and eat them as I was working. Fresh donuts are soooo delicious.

    The bakers there were real scumbags though. By the time we'd finished (about 10am) they would be drunk as and more than once did some hard drugs in the bakery (snorting off of the surfaces they pounded dough on!!). They would always lump me with the shitty, dirty, long jobs as they left for the day (cleaning the fryer, moving all the bags of flour from the storage etc.) and they said I could help myself to a few things from the fridge (vanilla slice, hedgehog etc).

    I used to take a bunch for my friends and family, it was great…till one day the manager was yelling at me like usual and telling me I was working like a little girl and needed to work faster (so many managers seem to graduate from that school of "I don't care how fast you're actually currently working, I will scream at you to work faster because I'm pathetic and don't know what else to do"). I threw my apron at him and left, knowing that it was probably the one and only time I could do it because I was still living with my parents and didn't really 'need' the money :P it was wonderful.

    Now I've got to take whatever is thrown at me and respond with "thank you sir, may I have another"…life sucks :(

    • bargdebarg on 22/05/2015 - 07:56

      Dude, find a new job.

      • Talonparty on 22/05/2015 - 19:27
        +3

        Heh, that's life man. When I was younger and didn't have to worry about finances then I didn't have to take any shit. Now if some arsehole with an inferiority complex wants to take out his or her frustrations on me there's little I can do other than, as you say, get a new job. But in this economy it's easier said than done :(

        (I'm not actually working-working at the moment though, I am finishing postgraduate study. Before this I was pretty much a dogsbody and had to cop my bosses bad attitude with a smile - hence the desire to leave and skill up)

    • hahaboy on 24/05/2015 - 10:27

      da (profanity). bakers doing lines of coke in the back? Did not anticipate that.

      • tomorrows_angel on 25/05/2015 - 14:33

        I dated a baker once. They were usually high or tripping at work.

        • dylanando on 27/05/2015 - 09:49

          Im a baker, no drugs, just yet!

      • Talonparty on 25/05/2015 - 19:42

        Speed, I was only a bakers assistant but I had a few mates who were bakers and they were all drug fiends mainly using speed to keep up the lifestyle of partying up until your shift and then powering through. Starting work at 1 or 2 am takes its toll.

        But yeah snorting it off the stainless steel surface they were working dough on. Crazy stuff. I was like 17 I think, it was a long time ago, last millennium even :P

  • OzzyOzbourne on 21/05/2015 - 22:21
    +18

    at my electronics design company, where I am a professional engineer with 20 years experience, we used to get free biscuits for break time, but due to cost cutting and the manager needing a new car, they had to stop the biscuits. But we do still get free toilet paper, which is really great.

    • dd721411 on 22/05/2015 - 01:03
      +2

      You can't really eat toilet paper though. So sad!

      • illumination on 22/05/2015 - 10:01
        +8

        You're saying that even after people above have been talking about having free maccas, coke, donuts??

      • bargdebarg on 22/05/2015 - 20:49
        -7

        Wow got negged to oblivion… Nice

    • kzrocky on 22/05/2015 - 20:22
      +1

      Luxury. All we got was gum leaves.

  • tko6070 on 21/05/2015 - 22:40

    Working at Perth Arena, I get tickets to various events such as motley crue this weekend. Most shows I get to watch as that is our break or down time for 2 hours or so..

  • SupeNintendoChalmers on 21/05/2015 - 22:57
    +7

    Ages ago worked at a large electronics store.

    Would troll the AS400 constantly and find things that were seriously below cost and purchase them.

    For example I once purchased all 10 copies of Resident Evil 4 on Gamecube (Collectors Edition) at the store, basically no one realised we sold GC games. The price went down from $94 to $10 without warning. The boxes on display still had $94 stuck to them

    Literally minutes after finishing I got my brother to go there and buy all 10 copies and use my discount card.

    I sold 9 copies for around $70 each.

    Good times.

    • itsfree on 22/05/2015 - 02:05
      +14

      BRODEN

      • tdw on 22/05/2015 - 19:37

        brodening would be if he flogged them on gumtree ;)

        • gimli on 22/05/2015 - 21:49

          nah i thought broden used flea bay

        • tdw on 23/05/2015 - 00:03

          @jubba: fleabay has fees…which would hurt the profit margins lol

    • CheapCoffee on 22/05/2015 - 14:31
      +4

      Dick Smith?

  • kimmylala on 21/05/2015 - 22:58

    Best perk at work is the 50% off all insurance products across several brands 😍😍=D

  • Dominic on 21/05/2015 - 23:07
    +6

    Back when I was studying I worked in fruit & veg at Woolies. We could eat all the fruit we wanted for quality control and so we could give an informed answer when a customer asked what something tasted like. Raspberries by the handful. My word, those were the days.

  • minniethemoocher on 21/05/2015 - 23:38
    +5

    I get free hot water and filtered cold water! Yeah!
    Edit: and a free flu shot!

    • scrimshaw on 21/05/2015 - 23:44

      Lemme guess…You work at a medical practice or in a hospital..

      • johnno07 on 22/05/2015 - 00:06
        +13

        Or any sort of public servant.

        • Forfiet on 25/05/2015 - 10:43

          …we get free flu shots at work…. (not a public servant)

    • [Deactivated] on 25/05/2015 - 22:03
      +1

      kpmg ey pwc or deloitte?

  • johnno07 on 22/05/2015 - 00:11
    +4

    Back in the day when we were selling new games (got out of it pretty quickly due to practically non-existent margins), I managed to get GTA IV about a week before release.

  • andrew229 on 22/05/2015 - 00:27
    +5

    With my old business i used to buy the staff a lunch every couple of weeks when we were busy. Also used to buy gift vouchers using the ff points obtained from buying items for work using credit card, and then share them with the better staff, the girls really appreciated that. Also used to give staff some extra couple of days wages at xmas time.

    We always treated our staff well, i always thought it was worth it, i'd rather work where people were happy, too many people dont see their company like that, we viewed it like a family. She also gives the staff an xmas dinner each year, plus a bonus. My wife does lots of extras for her staff, she gets very low staff turnover :-)

    Now one of my two best friends works for her in one of companies, he is so happy, and really enjoys working where he is appreciated, and his feedback and ideas are valued, i have to admit it makes me happy knowing he is finally happy in his job.

    • [Deactivated] on 24/05/2015 - 18:13
      +2

      Where do you work? Hiring?

  • Blottski on 22/05/2015 - 00:41
    +1

    media accreditation to every major soccer match in Australia. Socceroo's/A League/Big name Friendly games

  • dd721411 on 22/05/2015 - 01:00

    Worked in many takeaways and restaurants before so free foods! After a few weeks, I was getting sick of eating all those salty, oily and even burnt foods. LOL!

    • rodinthink on 23/05/2015 - 01:06

      Which restaurant? Happy Garden or Thai?
      Happy garden so popular with salty and oily

      • dd721411 on 23/05/2015 - 01:32

        Neither of them ;). Chinese foods are delicious even though they're too oily and salty for my taste. Thai foods are spicy and full of herbs which I like a lot, but sometimes they smell too strong. I'm biased towards Viet foods though. (Don't blame me for that ;)

        I used to work for K-Tong, Bahn Thai (Cas.Sqr) then Dragon Court (SkyCity). The benefit of working in the kitchen is that you can cook fresh food in your own style and enjoy it. It's very different with the foods made for customers because you have to alter the recipe to suit their taste, therefore foods lose their original value and flavor.

  • iridiumstem on 22/05/2015 - 02:38

    I used to work for a place that is similar to NORAD during my conscription (sort of, ish, not really but, does similar job in my home country). I learnt ICAO codes for most of the airports and airliners (which is pretty much useless because most airports stick to IATA code), US Department of Defense aerospace vehicle designation and nicknames for many aircrafts and I even got to see a F-22 in real life (I also saw A-10s, C-17, U-2 and F-16). I even got to learn the helicopter types and roughly how to identify them. There were few other things I've seen that were "cool".

    I think it gave me a hobby that I'd probably wouldn't have gotten and I sort of appreciate it since I did get some insights on those news on military stuff. Also, I did end up getting a lot of discounts which I've used fairly a lot.

    • Forfiet on 25/05/2015 - 10:45

      so what's the going discount on a S-70 or a F-18 :P

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