Apple pick of the bunch as UK’S most popular private employers revealed
● Work-life balance and career prospects mean as much to workers as high salary
By JONATHAN RIMMER and perks rather than just a high salary.
He said: “The difference between a good job and a great job can vary from person to person, but our ranking shows some common themes shine through.
“Companies that make their employees feel valued and offer a positive working environment score consistently highly among the reviews posted on Indeed.
“As we continue to see for many staff, work-life balance, career prospects and a great workplace culture can all mean more than a good salary alone.”
Highly ranked companies include both high street and business-to-business brands, with British firms accounting for two-thirds of the top 25.
The Yorkshire-based Wren Kitchens ranked second due to its perceived positive treatment of employees.
Mark Pullan, managing director at Wren Kitchens, said:“wren is a family business, passionate about giving our customers their dream kitchen.
“We truly believe in developing our staff to their full potential. We have a fast-paced, hard-working culture, and those who put the effort in are rewarded with great earning potential and a fun, fulfilling career.”
The third most popular company to work for on the list was global pharmaceuticals business Glaxosmithkline, whose employees praised it for offering a good work and life balance as well as attractive career prospects.
Colleen Schuller, head of employee engagement at GSK, said: “We’re a science-led global healthcare company with a special purpose to help people do more, feel better and live longer – and we believe
● 1: Apple
● 2: Wren Kitchens
● 3: Glaxosmithkline
● 4: Homeserve (insurance)
● 5: Rolls-royce
● 6: Nando’s
● 7: Lush Cosmetics
● 8: John Lewis
● 9: Unilever
● 10: Marks & Spencer
● 11: Harrods
● 12: BBC
● 13: Barclays
● 14: Clarks
● 15: Pandora
● 16: Cargiant
● 17: Liverpool FC
● 18: Adidas
● 19: Thomson Reuters (media)
● 20: Estee Lauder
● 21: Lloyds Banking Group
● 22: The Perfume Shop
● 23: Microsoft
● 24: Tesco
● 25: Intercontinental Hotels
that starts with our people. So it’s great to see that past and present employee feedback reinforces that GSK is a great place to work.”
The only sporting entry near the top of the table was 17thplaced Liverpool Football Club. Employees praised it for being a “productive and fun” workplace, with 87 per cent of employees approving of their chief executive’s performance.
However, there was unsurprisingly a big discrepancy in pay between porters and stewards earning salaries around the minimum wage mark and the club’s top footballer Mohamed Salah, who earns a staggering £200,000 a week.
Other firms on the list include high street retailer Marks & Spencer, and department store John Lewis, which invites employees to become partners in the company and receive shares in profits.
Supermarket heavyweight Tesco currently lists the most available jobs on Indeed with nearly 6,000. In total, ten of the top 25 most popular firms were in the retail sector.