For the first time, working less is worth more than a high salary, says study

Work culture in the U.S. is changing, and employees are tired of orders to return to in-person work five days a week and after-hours calls from their bosses. Disillusioned with the corporate American grind, they are finally prioritizing work-life balance — even more than a high salary.

Work-life balance is now the factor most valued by professionals in relation to current or future employment, according to Randstad’s Workmonitor 2025 report. Around 83% of people list it as the most important consideration — along with job security — while salary comes in third place, at 82%. This is the first time since the first Workmonitor study 22 years ago that balance has trumped salary as an incentive.

Also read: Does work get in the way of life? Learn how to be more relaxed and productive at the same time

“Workers’ search for environments that adapt to them, and not the other way around, continues to be a major motivator,” states the report. “Their expectations have become more multifaceted, with traditionally valued aspects of the workplace giving way to broader priorities.”

Generation Z leads the way in valuing balance over salary

As expected, young people are at the forefront of this shift in expectations from employers.

The difference in importance between flexibility and pay is more pronounced among Generation Z, according to the report. Around 74% classify work-life balance as a priority, compared to just 68% who put salary first.

The younger generation also puts mental health (70%) above attractive salaries — it’s one way to ensure they feel satisfied going to work every day.

They also value remote and hybrid models more than salary: About 40% of Gen Z and millennials would take a pay cut in exchange for more workplace flexibility, according to a 2025 LinkedIn report.

This is part of a larger trend among young professionals called “career minimalism” while preserving energy for personal ambitions outside of work hours.

But older workers also advocate sustainable agendas. The report shows that the importance of balance and salary grows with age: 85% of baby boomers consider balance a priority and 87% point to salary as a relevant factor. Many value balance, but have not completely abandoned the idea that “cash is king.”

Workers want flexibility — but CEOs say it’s a distant dream

Employees at both the bottom and the top of the corporate ladder agree: balance is essential when considering a job. However, CEOs differ sharply on whether it’s possible to be ambitious and disconnect at a reasonable time.

Marc Randolph, co-founder of Netflix, is one of the few extremely successful entrepreneurs who advocate clear boundaries between personal and professional life.

He followed a simple rule throughout his three-decade career: every Tuesday he left the office at 5pm and did no more work that day. I went to the cinema, had dinner or went for a walk with a friend — and “nothing got in the way of that”.

“I’ve worked hard my entire life to keep my life balanced with my work,” he wrote in an old LinkedIn post that’s been circulating again. “Those Tuesday nights kept me sane. They put everything else in perspective.”

Surprisingly by Wall Street standards, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon also encourages young professionals to take a break from work — for the sake of their mental health and relationships.

“You have to have work-life balance,” Dimon told students at Georgetown University last year.

“We tell people at JPMorgan that they need to take care of their mind, their body, their spirit, their soul, their friends, their health. You really need it.”

There are many CEOs and entrepreneurs who deeply disagree with the concept of work-life balance. Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, and Lucy Guo, of Scale AI, publicly criticized the idea of ​​working 9 am to 5 pm.

Andrew Feldman, co-founder and CEO of AI chipmaker Cerebras, called it absurd that people want “both sides”.

“This idea that someone can achieve greatness, build something extraordinary by working 38 hours a week and having work-life balance is unbelievable to me,” he said on the 20VC podcast last month. “That has never been true in any area of ​​life.”