When you’re in the market for a new job, it’s all too easy to be lured in by roles that aren’t quite as wonderful as they seem at first glance. The ‘competitive’ salary mentioned on the listing is competing only for ‘most disappointing figure ever’. The claims of flexible working in your interview turn out to mean you’re expected to log on at evenings and weekends. You took a job because of their commitment to diversity and inclusion, then discover the workplace doesn’t deliver (a classic case of diversity dishonesty). 

The fact is, our standards for jobs have increased over the past few years. As a result, prospective employers know they need to offer more than simply a job: we want a decent salary, we want to work remotely, we want the company’s values to align with our own. This has led to a phenomenon called perkwashing, where workplaces are so desperate to get new workers through the door that they inflate what they truly have to offer. 

“A close cousin of ‘wellbeing washing’, perkwashing is when companies attract employees through impressive company benefits policies (like flexible working) which aren’t actually offered in practice, or only go skin deep,” Ally Fekaiki, CEO and founder at flexible employee benefits platform Juno, tells Stylist. “It’s a kind of virtue signalling specific to the world of work.”

The impact of perkwashing is obvious: you might agree to a job with an expectation of certain things, only to be deeply disappointed once you start and discover your expectations aren’t met. With the stigma around quick quitting still looming large and the recession making many of us feel lucky to simply have a job, it can feel difficult to back out once you’re in the role. So you stick around, increasingly miserable in a position that’s been mis-sold. 

The solution to this is obvious, too: employers need to walk the walk, not just talk the talk, and shouldn’t be making lofty promises about how great their business is if the reality doesn’t deliver. “It’s normal for employers to do their utmost to make their company sound like a positive place to work,” notes Fekaiki. “But what’s not OK is to make misleading or inaccurate claims about what’s on offer to mask systemic cultural problems or upsell a role.”

Alas, we don’t think all employers are going to read this article and immediately shape up. What we can do instead is equip ourselves with the ability to spot perkwashing and steer clear when it appears. So, how do we do that?

Dig into concrete benefits

OK, so your potential boss-to-be says the workplace has a great, supportive culture for working parents. Sounds nice! But what does that actually mean in practice? It’s OK to ask. 

“The best way to spot company benefits that only go skin deep is to assess how company culture and other forms of support align with the benefit,” says Jenny Saft, CEO and co-founder at fertility benefits platform Apryl. “For example, some companies might offer fertility treatments to support parents and families. But for fertility benefits to have the biggest possible impact, it’s also important that a company’s parental leave policies are up to scratch.”

“Don’t be afraid to ask an employer about the benefits on offer before you accept a job, to understand how they play out in practice,” adds Fekaiki. “It can be useful to find out how many people have used a particular benefit in the last six months, what that benefit actually entails and why that benefit is on offer: what was the motivation behind it, and what’s the desired outcome? 

“Watch out for vague offers of ‘mental health and wellbeing’ support; always ask about what’s actually being delivered to employees.”

Keep an eye out for signs of hypocrisy

Is there evidence to suggest a workplace’s proclamations of greatness aren’t all they seem? Look out for a high turnover rate, a tense office environment or people emailing late into the night or at weekends if the company claims to be all about work/life balance. What signs are there that the perks on offer are surface level, or don’t ring true for everyone?

One example? “A red flag is when companies offer support like therapy, but gladly work employees to the bone until they burn out,” says Sançar Sahin, co-founder at Oliva, an employee mental health platform.

Suss out how much choice current employees get

“Try to understand how much choice staff are given when it comes to their benefits,” Fekaiki suggests. “The best employers will empower their teams to choose at least some elements of their benefits themselves to ensure they genuinely benefit them.”

Speak to current or ex-employees to fact-check claims made in interviews 

Want to avoid signing on to a job that’s engaging in flexibility faking? Your best bet is to ask current or past employees how flexible their job really is or was.

Molly Johnson-Jones, co-founder at the global directory for verified flexible companies, Flexa, suggests: “Unfortunately, the popularity of flexible work means some employers are being tempted to make false or vague claims of flexibility on job adverts (eg marketing themselves as flexible when in reality they are not) to attract talent. We call this ‘fake flexibility’ and it makes it near impossible for jobseekers to make well-informed decisions about roles. 

“The best way for jobseekers to work out whether a company is genuine about its promise of flexible working is to speak to current or former employees to get a sense of how these policies are being implemented in practice. 

“You can also search for companies on the Flexa platform to check whether they’re a verified ‘flexible’ employer. We give companies a ‘Flex Score’ based on employee satisfaction and feedback about the level of flexibility offered, and also list the other key company benefits on offer to give you a transparent and objective overview of company flexibility and perks.”

Push for specifics

At the mention of a perk, iron out exactly what’s being offered and how. Take the example of mental health – a company might say they take mental health seriously, but what exactly are they providing to support that claim? Will they be covering the cost of therapy or giving you time off for self-care? Or are they just shoving a mindfulness app your way and calling it a day?

“A red flag is when companies provide mental health support using apps or services that aren’t run by clinical experts,” notes Sahin. “Always check out who is behind the support you’re receiving. Employee assistance programmes are also a clear example of a box-ticking benefit. They’re sold dirt cheap and if any significant number of people actually choose to use it, the whole model breaks. So they get buried, under-promoted and forgotten about.”

When you’re in the role, give feedback to management

Make sure that if you suspect your current workplace is engaging in perkwashing, you speak up about it. 

“It’s important to recognise that not every company will perkwash on purpose: most employers have good intentions, but may not have the resources they need to follow through on their promises,” notes Saft. “It’s therefore important for staff to give their employers feedback on benefits policies that are falling short, to give them the chance to improve the system. For employers, working with the right benefits providers will enable you to put robust systems in place to audit, implement and roll out company benefits policies effectively.”

Main image: Getty