Nine out of ten workers in Ireland said they would leave their current job if they were offered flexibility in another role, according to a survey from Irish recruitment agency Employflex.

The survey, which polled 670 workers across Ireland, found that four out of five believe that flexible work should be a legal right for everyone in the workplace.

Meanwhile, two-thirds of those surveyed said that flexibility is the most important thing for them when looking for a job, ahead of salary (8%) and location (13%).

Survey data also points out that many workers are unaware if their company offers a flexible work policy as two in five don’t know if their company even has a flexible work policy. Slightly over half of those surveyed said they work in a flexible workplace.

Over half of people surveyed said they would not feel comfortable asking their employer for flexibility, however nine out of ten agreed that offering flexibility at work is the top way to retain talent. This was followed by encouraging career progression and offering nice perks.

Karen O’Reilly, Founder of Employflex, commented, "We are standing on the brink of the fourth industrial revolution but many companies are still stuck back in the stone ages when it comes to allowing flexibility. In today’s world flexibility at work is possible with the developments in technology. Companies need to move away from the “seat-warmer” mentality and realise that flexible work can work for everyone. It is alarming to see from the survey that so many people would not feel comfortable asking for flexible work but when it comes to the priority for employees, it is all about flexibility."