For years, employers have tried in vain to crack the code for attracting and retaining Generation Z and Millennial employees. The answer, as it turns out, lies in a business function that is too often overlooked — payroll.

While employers have frequently turned to ‘perks’ such as free lunches, casual dress, gym memberships and pet-friendly offices to try to connect with the next generation, the newly released Canadian Payroll Association Essential Benefits Survey, conducted among members
of the online Angus Reid Forum, shows that younger workers are not as different from their older peers as originally thought. The foremost concern for Generation Z and Millennial employees when it comes to employment benefits is the same as previous generations: accurate and timely pay.

Nearly four out of five respondents reported consistent and accurate pay to be an essential benefit of employment that they would not work without. This result was consistent across all age demographics, with 78 per cent of Generation Z, 83 per cent of Millennials, 79 per cent of
Generation X and 74 per cent of Baby Boomers identifying pay as essential. By comparison, health and dental benefits (61%), RRSP programs and pension plans (43%), flexible working arrangements (38%), training and development opportunities (35%), additional vacation time
(30%) and work perks (12%) were all deemed to be essential by significantly fewer respondents.