Young employees don’t want fun office perks; they want respect.

Young employees don’t want fun office perks; they want respect. Sure, ping-pong tables, beer on tap, and tricked out office spaces might sound nice, but when it comes to retaining talent for the long-haul, what young employees really care about is feeling valued. In a survey of more than 1,000 full-time employees ages 21-34-years-old from a variety of industries, researchers from Kansas State University and the University of Missouri’s Novak Leadership Institute found that “autonomous respect” (the feeling of being respected for who you are beyond your work title) is highly valued, compared to other factors like how well employees say they’re able to bounce back from setbacks, engagement levels, and perks employers use to retain workers. The researchers also note that previous studies have found that many managers aren’t properly trained to be leaders, and say investing more in educational training programs that nurture managers’ leadership skills can lead to more respectful communication and positive workplace culture. Employees tend to see through shiny workplace benefits—many of which are designed to keep employees inside office walls—and YPulse’s employment and career goals research found that 75% of employed Millennials also want mental health support from their jobs. (Fast Company)