Global Talent Trends

According to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace: 2023 Report, employee engagement is a major pain point for employers around the world. And with Gallup estimating that low engagement rates cost the global economy $8.8 trillion, businesses are faced with addressing today’s talent trends before they hinder organizational resilience and performance.

Employees Are Still Quiet Quitting

Despite Gallup reporting record-high employee engagement, there are significant numbers of the world’s employees taking part in today’s “quiet quitting” trend. In fact, 59% of employees are putting in the bare minimum at work, watching the clock and contributing less.

The signs of quiet quitting are typically:

• Not attending non-mandatory meetings
• Not being as productive as they once were
• Contributing to team projects less
• Not participating in meetings
• Displaying a lack of enthusiasm

And employees are expressing what they would change to improve their workplace: engagement or culture; pay and benefits; and well-being. Though there may be several reasons for an employee to become disengaged, quiet quitting is often due to stress and burnout, two factors that employers can influence.

Employee Stress Is at a Record High

Gallup’s report shows that 44% of respondents are experiencing stress. Though there is no direct cause of the record number of stressed workers, the report does show low engagement is related to higher stress. In fact, engagement has 3.8 times as much influence on employee stress as work location.

Employers looking to address high levels of stress need to go beyond simply providing employee assistance programs. Instead, a comprehensive mental health strategy needs to be created, expanding mental health benefits, upskilling managers to provide employee mental health support, and equipping employees with the awareness and skills to manage their stress levels.

A Widespread Resurgence in Jobs Has Employees Looking Elsewhere

More than half of employees worldwide are looking for new jobs as there was an increase in the number of available jobs. Those employees that are disengaged are more at risk of leaving, with 61% of actively disengaged employees are watching for or seeking a new job, compared to 43% of engaged employees.

Smart employers are implementing a top-down commitment to engagement, starting with management. They are also defining what engagement looks like for their organization and measuring and scoring engagement levels regularly.

Improving Employee Engagement

Provide Clear Job Descriptions

Job descriptions let employees know exactly what is expected of them. Employers should review job descriptions to ensure they accurately reflect the duties they expect their employees to perform.

Providing Learning and Development Opportunities

High employee engagement is crucial to preventing quiet quitting. One effective way to increase engagement is through learning and development initiatives. According to Zywave’s 2022 Attraction and Retention Benchmarking Overview, 29% of employers found career development opportunities to be a top priority of workers during the hiring process. Employees who have these opportunities are more likely to remain engaged and stay motivated to try their best at their jobs.

Focus on Good Management Strategies

Effective management is essential to having efficient, happy employees, so it’s important to focus on the techniques managers use. Provide resources to managers about effective strategies and meet with them to discuss ways. Additionally, consider conducting skip reviews, where employees talk with their manager’s manager to discuss feedback or concerns they may have. This will allow the manager to receive helpful feedback that can be mutually beneficial and improve their employees’ experiences.

Employee engagement, or lack thereof, is not a problem singular to the United States. Companies around the globe are feeling the impact of a disengaged workforce and must make changes if they want to improve retention and increase productivity.

The above information does not constitute advice. Always contact your insurance broker or trusted advisor for insurance-related questions.