Survey of Working Adults Shows U.S. Employees Willing to Take Pay Cut for Workplace Flexibility

ATLANTA, Sept. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Mom Corps, a national flexible staffing firm, today released findings from an online survey conducted on its behalf by Harris Interactive among 1,071 working adults nationwide about their preferences around workplace flexibility and work/life balance. Results show flexible work options are significantly important to working professionals today as a deciding factor when taking a job.

Results show that:

• More than two in five working adults (42 percent) are willing to give up some percentage of their salary for more flexibility at work; about six percent is the average.
• Perhaps surprisingly, working men (12 percent) are twice as likely as working women (6 percent) to say they would be willing to give up more than 10 percent of their salary to receive more flexibility.
• The 18-34 age group is up to three times more likely to give up more than 10 percent of their salary even though the unemployment rate for young workers is highest among all age groups.

"The fact that employees of all ages are willing to give up any percentage of their salary in exchange for more flexibility over their work schedule is significant, especially given the economic climate and record unemployment," says Allison O'Kelly, founder/CEO of Mom Corps. "Corporate America no longer aligns with the way U.S. families conduct their daily lives. Participating in some form of flexible work option allows employees to have more work/life balance, and successful companies know this can yield a significant return on investment for them."

Other key findings:

• More than three in five working adults (62 percent) agree that flexibility is one of the most important factors they consider when looking for a new job or deciding what company to work for.
• 79 percent of working mothers and 77 percent of working fathers agree they would stay with a company longer if it offered flexible work options.

About Mom Corps

Launched in 2005 by Allison O'Kelly, a CPA, Harvard MBA and working mother, Mom Corps matches leading companies with high-caliber professionals looking for alternative work arrangements. An industry leader in the flexible employment market, its mission is to: 1) provide organizations direct access to a previously untapped market segment of exceptional talent—professionals who have opted out of the traditional workplace, and 2) enable professionals to work in their respective fields while simultaneously meeting familial needs and responsibilities and work preferences. Visit www.momcorps.com.  

About Harris Interactive

Harris Interactive is one of the world's leading custom market research firms, leveraging research, technology, and business acumen to transform relevant insight into actionable foresight. Known widely for the Harris Poll and for pioneering innovative research methodologies, Harris offers expertise in a wide range of industries including healthcare, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer package goods. Visit www.harrisinteractive.com.

About the Survey

This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Interactive on behalf of Mom Corps from July 27-29, 2011 among 2,127 adults aged 18 and over, of whom, 1,071 are "working adults" (employed full time and/or part time) and 345 are "working parents" (employed full time and/or part time AND parent or legal guardian of children under 18 years old residing in their household). This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

SOURCE Mom Corps