The pandemic pressed the Great Reset button on work. We’re entering a new era that calls for evolved priorities and preferences from employers.

To help leaders adapt, we surveyed 750 US and 500 UK workers to better understand what’s important to them in a job. We then compared the findings to the data from our original Great Discontent survey in 2021.

The results – in Workable’s brand-new Great Discontent 2.0 survey report – spotlight clear transformations in what employees now value most. Companies that tune in to their people’s changing needs will be primed to attract and retain top talent. Those that ignore the new reality risk driving their best people away.

Across both markets, one priority emerges crystal clear: employees are seeking stability. Commitment is a two-way street: when organizations commit, this breeds loyalty in return among today’s workforce.

With economic and geopolitical uncertainties abounding, workers crave a reliable income stream. Full-time roles are increasingly in demand, with a drop in self-employment and side-hustles. The active jobseeker herd has thinned as employees hunker down in their current roles – although they’re not entirely dropping out of the new-job sweepstakes.

Smart companies are promoting stability and security. This could involve highlighting a strong company history that makes one proud to work for them, robust plans for growth that tap into workers’ desire to grow and shine in their careers, and assurances around job security to show people that someone’s got their back.

Beyond stability, the data reveals evolutions in what attracts and retains workers in the US and UK today:

Flexibility

Flexibility has become firmly entrenched as the new normal. Whether it’s remote work, hybrid arrangements, or flexible scheduling, employees want options. After adapting so extensively through the pandemic, inflexible work seems unthinkable to many. Savvy employers aren’t just allowing flexibility – they’re embracing and perfecting it.

Society and humanity

The social and human elements of work matter more than ever. Employees want to connect with leaders who inspire them. They want collaborative relationships with colleagues who feel like family. Cold corporate machines have little appeal – workers seek warmer environments where they feel valued. Forward-thinking companies are strengthening culture, facilitating connections, and communicating with transparency.

Growth and advancement

Hunger for growth and advancement persists. Employees still want opportunities to continuously develop skills, take on new challenges and progress their careers. However, potential now outweighs paychecks for attracting new talent – highlighting the motivational power of personal growth. Workplaces that invest in people’s futures, instead of just exploiting their presents, have the edge.

Compensation

Of course, compensation still stands number-one atop the priority pyramid. While other factors have grown in importance, pay still matters. Fair compensation, generous benefits and updated rewards strategies are essential for retention. But they’re just one part of a bigger picture – financial incentives alone aren’t enough in today’s environment.

In many ways, the new era requires a back-to-basics approach. What prevailed before was often surface-level attractions and momentary exchanges. Moving forward, employees are seeking simplicity, clarity and meaning. They want to connect, contribute and grow. Employers that tap into these fundamentally human desires will be poised to flourish.

Those that cling to outdated assumptions risk losing today’s top talent to those that just “get it”.

This is just a high-level overview. The full data provides richer insights into the forces shaping the workforce. Check out the highlights!

Are you ready to not just survive, but thrive in the new era of work? Uncover more about what employees value most today – and how to align your organization with their evolving needs and preferences.

The post The Great Discontent 2.0: What workers want in this new era appeared first on Recruiting Resources: How to Recruit and Hire Better.

We didn’t just experience a societal earthquake two years ago – we saw all changed utterly, to borrow from a Yeats poem. And we had to adapt quickly to survive. There were many adaptations as we quickly learned, particularly in the workplace – the surge of remote work, the incorporation of digital technology, and a mountain of concerns around employee engagement.

What about now in 2022? What does that new world of work look like and did all those predictions from the first time around ring true? Or were they much ado about nothing?

We decided to go and find out for ourselves, by sending out the same survey again in July 2022 – albeit with a few updated questions. The social patchwork that was so rudely ripped apart throughout 2020 has been somewhat stitched together in new ways. We know now what threads from that patchwork remained intact from before, and more so, what new threads are being sewn.

This new report comes in two parts – first, our learnings from the new survey, and second, how the new results compare with the results from 2020. The findings are remarkable. Enjoy the read and do join our conversation on the topic in the Workable Community.

Meanwhile, the major themes are as follows:

Hybrid is the new agreement

The oscillatory negotiation between return-to-office and full remote work may have settled on a new trend: hybrid. Is this a new stopgap measure or is it the way forward?

Jobseekers have the upper hand

The rise of compensation, benefits and opportunities as top value props shows that jobseekers have leverage in what they can get out of a job beyond “getting” the job.

Nothing is ‘normal’ anymore

The majority of businesses are moving on to the “next normal” in terms of working environments and business processes – and there’s no going back to the way things were.

Long-term remote problems

The long-term challenges of remote work are surfacing in the form of tech stack considerations, asynchronous issues and lingering anxieties both for businesses and their workers.

When there are setbacks and disruptions, there are adaptations and adjustments. And now, we’re presenting those in this comprehensive new survey report from Workable, titled The New World of Work, two years on: A 2022 Worker Survey.

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So we conducted a survey of our own on worker mental health, and 1,300 people responded – giving us multilateral insight into this crucial theme. The result is a comprehensive, data-packed report called, appropriately, Mental Health in the Workplace.

Out of the many insights from the survey, we have four major takeaways for you:

This is nothing new

Mental health has always been around for many – the pandemic simply added fuel to the call for more support in the workplace

To each their own

The mental health experience – and subsequent needs – depends on the individual. There is no “one-size-fits-all” solution.

Less talk, more space

It’s not about opening up the conversation, even though that’s important. It’s more about establishing a safe zone for your employees to thrive.

Proactivity is the key

Be proactive, inclusive and all-encompassing in your workplace mental health strategy. Don’t assume that your employees have everything they need.

Our survey also finds that two-thirds of employers have already prioritized employee mental health, and another quarter will prioritize it going forward – making 84.7% in all. Of those who don’t prioritize mental health, two out of five respondents say they don’t know why their company doesn’t have a spotlight on it.

Mental health is also, as a habit, an intensely private matter for many. One quarter of respondents say they’re not at all comfortable raising their mental health concerns with anyone at their workplace – and a disproportionate amount of those are respondents who identify as a minority or as male.

We also learned of other differences across genders and minority status in terms of what kind of support they receive, with more women than men procuring their mental health support and services outside of the workplace rather than using their employer’s existing resources.

The business case is clear for many employers, with 40% saying employee productivity and performance is a major reason for the emphasis on mental wellness in their company. But the know-how is another matter altogether.

In the end, inclusivity is the key. There’s no perfect solution, but a blanket policy for mental wellness in the workplace isn’t always going to work once you go deeper into those resources. With the wide-ranging responses around comfort (or lack of comfort) on the topic of mental wellness and mental health challenges, and the varying needs across different demographics, it’s crucial for employers to be proactive and flexible in their policy so that their employees can get what they need without needing to go through the strain of asking for it first.

These times of unprecedented employee turnover and diminishing numbers of job candidates tell us that people are not getting what they need from the existing workplace – and consequently, they’re dropping out of the system. Actively taking care of your employees – both current and future – may be a major key to candidate attraction and employee engagement.

Dive into our report, and tell us what you think.

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1. Contrary to popular belief, the stress of the last two years didn’t worsen mental health in the workplace – rather, it enhanced the conversation around it. Nearly two out of every three respondents said they had mental health challenges before 2020 that impacted their day-to-day work.
2. The topic of mental health is a private challenge for many, with more than a quarter of respondents saying they can never talk about their challenges at work.
3. Of those respondents whose employers do not prioritize mental wellness in their workforce, more than two out of five don’t know why it’s not a priority.

We also learned that those identifying as women are more likely to seek outside help rather than utilize their company’s existing mental wellness resources – which tells us that their mental health needs aren’t always met by existing policy.

Nevertheless, the benefits of ensuring mental wellness in employees are clear, with more than 40% of employers citing worker productivity and performance as a key factor in a successful mental health strategy.

The challenge is how to implement such a strategy that benefits everyone at work.

We have more – much, much more – in our report which goes live very, very soon. Right now, bookmark this link and check back periodically – you do not want to miss out on these valuable insights. Don’t let the 404 page throw you off – remember, the report is not yet published!

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Quit rates are through the roof, and weirdly enough, it’s not translating into a larger and more active candidate pool for employers – rather, it’s the opposite. Workers appear to be dropping out of the system, and they’re not all ready to move to a new job. Data from the Workable network confirms this as well.

Employers are taking a hit from all this. At best, they’re making do with leaner teams; at worst, they’re shutting down entirely because of this unique talent shortage.

It’s becoming more challenging to retain talent, and harder to attract candidates to new roles. As leaders in the hiring space, we’re very cognizant of this, and we want to help you overcome these challenges. So, instead of theorizing and speculating and predicting and analyzing, we decided to ask 1,250 workers in the US and UK to find out what they want and value in a job.

Out of the many insights in the Great Discontent survey, we have four main takeaways for you:

Money still talks

Despite all the new workplace developments, salary, perks and benefits are still top of mind. People want – and need – more of it when working.

Flexy is sexy

Flexible work arrangements are important to many workers – and much more for women than men – but it’s not as high of a priority for their employers.

The power of connectivity

No matter the kind of work involved, people are at the heart of it all. When people feel connected to their colleagues and leadership, they’ll stay and they’ll thrive.

There’s no place like home

Integrating personal and professional lives is very important for people – it’s the top reason why those not working aren’t working and the top benefit of flexible work. Again, this is especially so for women.

Our survey also finds that three quarters of workers may be ready to bolt at any given time. This signals a potential disconnect in the system. It’s a tough situation for employers, and this may require a fresh look at your talent attraction and retention strategy.

These are strange, historic, exciting times, and it’s clear the rules of the game are changing for employers. We don’t have all the answers – those will come later in hindsight. But the conversation is always worth adding to. We think you’ll find useful insights here as we venture into the new world of work and post-pandemic environment.

Without further ado, check out our reports:

• The Great Discontent: 2021 Worker Survey (US)
• The Great Discontent: 2021 Worker Survey (UK)

Have insights, concerns, criticisms, swear words, accolades, or anything else? We’d love to hear them. Please send them to our content team at content@workable.com and we’ll be sure to address each and every one of them.

Yours in sustainability,

Nikos Moraitakis
CEO, Workable

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Out of many insights, we’re highlighting four major themes for you:

1. The democratic driver

The prioritization of DEI in the workplace is largely a response to an amplified call for action from the grassroots level – especially employees. 63% of respondents cite DEI as a priority in their organization.

2. We talk, but can we walk?

While the voice for DEI in the workplace is clear and largely unified, there are disconnects in who should be leading it and how. For instance, 28.8% of those in entry-level / individual contributor jobs think executives, directors and managers should own DEI progress – compared with 22% of the latter who think the same.

3. The gender division

There are stark differences in responses between respondents based on gender identity – particularly in terms of personal opinion and perceived progress. For example, 96.7% of females say DEI is personally important to them, while 12.3% of males say it isn’t.

4. Talent pool isn’t broad enough

For many, talent availability is a major limiter in diversifying a workforce. Nearly half (48.3%) of those in Manufacturing cite lack of talent diversity in their industry is a major challenge.

The biggest lesson we’re picking up – and we’re sharing this in the report in depth – is that DEI seems largely intangible at first, but once you get into the particulars, it’s as actionable as any other business strategy. Plus, there are clear benefits in doing so, in terms of employee engagement, employer branding, candidate attraction, and yes, the bottom line.

Moreover, when half of the respondents in our survey say that having DEI in their business strategy is the “right thing to do”. It’s no longer about merely ticking off the boxes – it’s about growing and evolving as a society. The DEI road map may not be etched in stone, but it’s clearer than it was before.

Within all the division and disparity in our society, there’s a drive to evolve. In these trying times, we’re trying to be better. This survey report offers insights and lessons on how we can get there.

Yours in unity,

Nikos Moraitakis
CEO, Workable

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The result is Workable’s New World of Work survey report. We think you’d be very interested in this. Out of many insights, we’re highlighting three for you:

• Remote work is the big paradigm shift.
• Digital transformation is the way to get there.
• Employee engagement (particularly in remote) and remote hiring/onboarding are huge concerns now and in the future.

Other insights from the data include:

• COVID-19 forced nearly two out of every three businesses to move fully to a remote-first environment.
• 56.5% of businesses plan to make remote permanent for at least some of their workforce going forward. Just 6.2% of businesses plan to do nothing in general.
• 68% of those going remote did it without disruption because they had the technology in place. Plus, 46.1% will prioritize tech in their plans to go remote.
• 7 in 10 education workers said they could actually go remote if they needed to – but the technology is just not there to allow that to happen.
• Candidate engagement, onboarding and evaluation are predicted to be major headaches in the new world of work. Add remote to the mix, and it becomes even more challenging.
• Senior-level executives are more worried about productivity while their employees are far more concerned about engagement.

But while there’s plenty of discussion and consensus in the three highlighted areas of the report, there is no clear solution or even a rulebook to follow in this new world of work that we’re entering.

What we know is that the traditional form of work – effectively, being roommates with your colleagues, sticking to a set schedule, being “present” at your desk – is no longer tenable. It’s like trying to drive an autonomous vehicle with a stick shift.

Remote is easy at first, and so is the tech adoption to get us there. But in the long term, the pandemic is forcing us to evolve. The numbers from our survey prove that. We may not know exactly how to go about it, but it’s now on us to figure out how to do it in the best way possible.

One respondent summed it up aptly:

“It is a road that has not been walked. I honestly don’t know what is ahead; one is only just willing to explore many different strategies until they find one that works.”

The COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing crisis is unprecedented, and is already being called a seminal event in modern-day world history. There will be entire books and documentaries produced on the topic.

One day, we’ll settle into a new form of living, whatever that may be. Until then, let’s keep thinking, talking, collaborating, as we work towards a new – and very different – future.

Stay healthy,

Nikos Moraitakis
CEO, Workable

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