Years ago, when I was working at some start-ups in Amsterdam, one of the great things I noticed was that they all offered perks.

Start-Up Perks

What are startup perks?

Here’s a news segment about perks at Silicon Valley startups. Watch the short video below and answer this question:

Which perks are mentioned in the video?

What does ‘perk’ mean in business?

A perk is a benefit. It is something extra that companies offer employees in addition to your salary. As an employee, you get an advantage, such as goods or money, because of your job.

For instance, some perks mentioned in the video are:

• workouts for free
• free boot camp
• discounts on electrical vehicles
• free Yoga sessions

The companies I worked at also offered free food, free beer, and a free bike in addition to free Yoga and Bootcamp sessions. Cool, right?

So, why do companies offer these perks?

There are various reasons why businesses, and especially startups, offer perks for their employees. They provide something extra for employees, for example…

• to attract talent
• for team bonding
• to create a nice company atmosphere
• for employee wellbeing
• so that workers stay longer at the office

Now that we know what the word ‘perk’ means, let’s look at the word itself and how you can use it at work.

What type of word is ‘perk’?

The word ‘perk’ is a noun. You can form the plural form by adding an ‘s’: perks.

How do you pronounce ‘perk’ correctly in English?

/pəːk/

The word ‘perk’ only has one syllable. Click on the speaker icon on the flashcards below to listen to the correct pronunciation.

How do you use the word ‘perk’ in business?

You only use the word ‘perk’ in informal conversations.

Frequent collocations with the word ‘perk’:

• job perk
• enjoy perks
• expect perks
• be entitled to perks

Here are some phrases you can use:

• One of the perks of this job is …

• The perks of my job include …

• He has enjoyed the perks of his job.

• I am pleased with the perks of my job.

• In this industry, you can expect a variety of perks, such as …

• You get … as perks of the job.

• She was entitled to perks like…

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Now, I would like to hear from you:

Do you know any other perks companies are offering? What perks does your company offer?

Tell us about some cool perks by commenting below!

Learn more Business English vocabulary