Does Hays pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Hays employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.2 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Hays. This rating has improved by 3% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Hays?

65% of Hays employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Hays 3.5 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.6 for culture and values and 3.7 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Hays?

Recruitment Consultant (997) , Consultant (378) , Recruiter (363) , Senior Recruitment Consultant (228) , Associate Recruitment Consultant (224) , Senior Consultant (208) , Associate Consultant (198) , Manager (169) , Account Manager (148) , Business Manager (119) , Director (90) , Senior Manager (85) , Intern (79) , Consultant en recrutement (75) , Key Account Manager (74)

What are the pros of working at Hays according to real employee reviews?

"The company wide training is good and comprehensive." ((in 684 reviews)); "Most of the teams have a great culture and it’s a very success driven company." ((in 422 reviews)); "I worked with really great people over a number of years with Hays and made some fabulous friends." ((in 313 reviews)); "I was lucky to be part of a great team who weren’t cut throat and were caring." ((in 216 reviews)); "Great support and colleagues." ((in 164 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Hays according to real employee reviews?

"Long hours and often expected to stay behind which can lead to burn out very quickly." ((in 354 reviews)); "Industry has low salaries for junior staff and Hays is no different" ((in 339 reviews)); "Low pay and sometimes less shifts" ((in 135 reviews)); "KPI's are really high and no work life balance" ((in 130 reviews)); "Clearly the management training is failing as all the managers do is micromanage instead of nurturing and supporting." ((in 106 reviews))

What are employees saying about Hays layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Hays layoffs and their outlook for job security at Hays in 2026.

Hays reviews

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3.6

65% would recommend to a friend

(5,743 total reviews)

Mark Dearnley

Not enough data to show CEO approval

52% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

3.8

Diversity & inclusion

3.7

Career opportunities

3.6

Culture & values

3.5

Work/Life balance

3.2

Senior management

3.2

Compensation and benefits

Hays has an employee rating of 3.6 out of 5 stars, based on 5,743 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Hays employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Recursos humanos industry (3.8 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

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Reviews by job title

6K reviews

2.0

Sep 2, 2008

Good Training, for a career head elsewhere

Recruitment consultant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Good spirit and morale betweeen colleagues. Good people work there and I have made some great, life-long friends.

Cons

Favouritist towards certain members of staff, rewards based on length of service, not skill. Bad management style and strongly in denial towards the staff about any threat of credit crunch/recession. Very long hours and often it seems that if you don't stay late most nights you are scowled at and it is noticed. Also as the workforce is quite young there is a lot of immaturity and inappropriate behaviour in what is meant to be a professional environment. Very poor comission structure in relation to others in the industry.

1.0

Jul 30, 2008

Having this company on your resume can damage your future career.

Senior manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

If you are willing to work all the hours that God sends then you have potential to earn good money at Hays. In commission payments, not as a salary. That is the only reason that you should consider Hays as an employer.

Cons

Appalling work life balance. You will work 55 hours a week here. Fact. You will not be able to afford not to. Very poor management. Managers are promoted on their sales ability, not their management ability. Non-existent benefits package. Generally uninspiring and not particularly intelligent colleagues.

1.0

Jul 8, 2008

Working for this large company may not be as glamorous as it seems.......

Recruitment consultant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Hays plc is a large company so opportunities to move within the company say, interstate/overseas are limitless. Also the brand recognition in the market place is a benefit. Most people know who Hays are so it makes it easier to do business and business development. Also due to the size of the company there are always new opportunities arising and these can be easliy capitalised on by performing employee's. It is aslo a good feeling to have a large company backing you so you know have some job security and they will aslo back you with any disputes that may arise with clients/candidates etc.

Cons

Hays are not known for paying very well, in fact it is a sink or swim environment with very little or ongoing training particularly on the job training to help you suceed. The business model is to bring in people fresh to recruitment, throw them in the deep end and see what happens. Another major problem is their branch managers are expected to bill which in itself is a full time job. It is very difficult to do the two jobs at once which means one of them has to suffer. If a manager wants to make money they need to bill which in turn means failure for the new and inexperienced recruits.

Viewing 5740 - 5742 of 5,743 Reviews

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Reviews by job title

Good Training, for a career head elsewhere

Having this company on your resume can damage your future career.

Working for this large company may not be as glamorous as it seems.......

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