EV chargers and ethical pensions: What green perks should businesses offer to staff?

Conducted by The Electric Car Scheme last month, the survey asked 1,084 people whether they would value perks that serve both to improve their lifestyles and to reduce their environmental impact.

Almost half (45%) of those polled said they would appreciate their employer providing free electric vehicle (EV) charging, either at the workplace or at their homes. This perk was rated as the most in-demand among the survey respondents.

Operating an electric car in the UK is already significantly cheaper than running a petrol or diesel model, but range anxiety continues to be a barrier to uptake, a recent House of Lords inquiry found

Linked to this, almost four in ten of those surveyed said they would value their employer offering an EV salary sacrifice scheme, whereby their organisation would help them to lease or purchase an electric car or van at a 30-60% lower cost.

This is particularly useful given the UK Government’s recent scaling back and withdrawal of several grant schemes to help motorists with the upfront cost of new EVs, which are not at price parity with new petrol and diesel models.

Other transport-related benefits which the survey respondents said they would like include cycle-to-work schemes and subsidies for public transport. Both of these perks were deemed valuable by one-quarter of the workers.

Public transport support schemes are likely to become more sought-after in recent months due to the upcoming increase in rail fares. Year-on-year increases will be 4.9% in England and up to 8.7% in the other UK nations.

Beyond transport

The research additionally found that staff would value ways to make their actions in the workplace more sustainable, including more sustainable lunch options, recycling and composting programmes.

But a far greater proportion of respondents would value, to a greater extent, the ability to work remotely.

One 2023 study, supported by Microsoft and Cornell University, found that those who worked exclusively remotely generated 54% less emission than colleagues who travelled to an office every day.

The Electric Car Scheme survey additionally found that one in five workers would appreciate their employer providing exclusive discounts with ethical brands and retailers, while the same proportion would like their employer to either invest in a more ethical pension scheme as a default or provide a ‘more sustainable’ pension option.

Make My Money Matter claims that switching pension providers can have a far greater impact on an individual’s carbon footprint than adopting a vegetarian diet, using renewable electricity at home and cutting out all flights.