'Employee engagement will become increasingly important as the globe enters uncertain economic times'
Many workers are looking to leave their employers, according to a Gallup survey.
Specifically, 47% of American and Canadian respondents are watching for or actively seeking a new job, and 71% think this is a good time to find new employment.
The comparable numbers globally are 51% and 53%, respectively.
"With a massive increase in the work-life blend through more fully remote or hybrid work, the job of managing has never been more complex – and never more important. Fully remote and hybrid employees are more highly engaged than fully on-site employees. But they also report higher stress and a higher tendency to be watching for other jobs,” says Jim Harter, Gallup's chief workplace scientist.
Many employees are leaving less than a year after joining an organization in a practice labeled as "quick quitting," according to a previous report.
Lower engagement, ‘load quitting’
North American workers were more engaged last year compared to the rest of the world, according to Gallup.
Overall, 31% of workers in the U.S. and Canada were thriving at work in 2022. Though the number was two points down from last year, it’s still much higher than the global data (23%).
Despite this, 17% of North American workers are “load quitting” or actively disengaged, up two points from 2021.
"Employee engagement will become increasingly important as the globe enters uncertain economic times,” says Harter. “Our research has shown that engagement has a stronger effect on organizational performance during a tough economy.”
U.S. worker productivity plunged by 2.7% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same period last year, according to a report from EY-Parthenon citing data from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.
High stress levels for workers
Gallup analysis finds that engagement has 3.8 times as much influence on employee stress as work location.
And many workers experience negative emotions throughout their day, finds Gallup’s survey of over 122,400 respondents in 2022.
Over half (52%) of American and Canadian workers – compared to 44% globally – experienced stress, and 18% – compared to 21% globally – felt anger.
“Although leaders and managers cannot change external sources of stress, they can make a difference in overall stress in workers' lives,” says Gallup. “Gallup analysis finds that when employees are engaged at work, they report significantly lower stress in their lives.”
Nearly four in five workers (79%) admitted that they felt burnt out in their careers, according to a previous report.
Making workers happy
Here are some ways to increase employee happiness – and productivity – at work in 2023, according to Lindsey Wilcox, with Nectar HR:
- Prioritize work-life balance.
- Allow flexible working schedules.
- Listen to your employees.
- Create career mobility.
- Recognize employees for their hard work and reward them.
- Offer extensive benefits.
