Will you be paying a 'Turn Up Top Up' bonus to your staff?

A number of business are now turning to financial incentives, to encourage their staff back into the office, now that Covid is a fading memory for many.

Also known as a 'Turn Up Top Up' bonus, companies such as law firm Osborne Clark (as reported by Jonathan Prynn in the Evening Standard) is linking regular attendance, to being considered for a bonus. The qualifying caveat being that their staff 'have to be at their desks more often than not'.

If such a financial carrot is to work then this type of attendance bonus has to more than cover the cost of the commute for the worker but businesses are struggling just to keep their basic wage bill in check, let alone having to consider paying out on additional attendance bonuses too.

This type of bonus may not sufficiently motivate the younger Gen Z or Millennial worker either - as many now see #wfh as a basic employment right. Would such a financial inducement in their eyes, compensate for the stress of having to commute in, forsaking their morning lie in, arriving back home much later and forgoing their established flexible WFH routine for childcare and domestic duties?

I suspect for many, the extra money simply wouldn't be enough (even in this cost of living crisis) - so employers may have to find other ways of enticing their workplace shy staff, back to the office with a combination of alternative measures.

Some companies are now offering 'work-cations' where staff can work from anywhere in the world e.g. at their second holiday home - during the holiday period (a kind of mini working sabbatical).

Other employers are investing in more personalised employee benefits to improve their overall #ex (Employee Experience). Either way, employers need to formulate a 'working plan' for attracting new talent but also for keeping their existing talent in the workplace and keeping them productive.