What employees value beyond pay

If someone asked you what your employees care about most, you might say pay. It’s a reasonable guess: pay is concrete, comparable and easy to talk about. But a major European workforce study suggests the answer is more complex. In fact, employees rated a safe working environment and a trusting one slightly above good pay and benefits.

The European Working Conditions Survey, conducted by Eurofound among more than 36,000 workers, asked people to rate what matters to them in a job. A working environment that protects mental and physical health was rated “very important” by 71% of respondents. A trusting working environment followed at 69%, with good pay and benefits close behind at 66%.

What matters at work

Good working hours were rated “very important” by 65% of respondents, while meaningful work and job security each scored 64%. Taken together, the figures suggest that no single factor determines how people feel about their work: pay, working conditions and the relationship with an employer all play a part.

For anyone managing a team, especially in a small or medium-sized business, the question isn’t only whether people are paid fairly. It’s also whether everyday processes, including how their hours are recorded, are transparent and consistent.

Effort and reward

The survey also found that roughly 30% of women and 24% of men report an effort–reward imbalance: a feeling that what they put into their work isn’t matched by what they receive in return. Pay can be part of that picture, alongside recognition and other aspects of work.

For employers, that’s a reason to look at how people’s work is recognised and rewarded. One practical step is to ensure that records accurately account for the hours employees have worked.

Predictable earnings

Eurofound reports that 15% of workers can’t predict their earnings for the next three months at all. For people working variable shifts in retail, hospitality, healthcare or logistics, uncertainty about future hours can make it harder to plan financially.

Time records can’t change what next month’s rota looks like, but they can make sure the hours already worked are recorded correctly. They also give employees a chance to flag discrepancies before payroll is processed.

For HR teams and managers, that means making the process straightforward: how hours are logged, who checks them and how discrepancies are resolved. When employees can see their own records, they can check their hours and know who to contact if something looks wrong.

The question to ask

The everyday details deserve attention: are breaks handled as agreed, are hours counted correctly and is there a simple way to fix mistakes? Alongside “Are we paying people fairly?”, employers can ask: “Can employees see that their time is recorded accurately, and do they know what happens if something looks wrong?”

Explore TimeMoto Cloud

If you’d like to give your team better insight into their working hours, TimeMoto Cloud brings time records and absence management together in one place. Employees and managers can view the information they need and address discrepancies sooner. Try TimeMoto Cloud free for 30 days.

Sources: Eurofound (2026), Living and working in Europe 2025, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg; Eurofound (2025), European Working Conditions Survey 2024: First findings, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg.