Whether it is confidence in the slowly improving economy or a need for a higher salary or a better work/life balance, workers are planning to changes jobs before the end of the year, according to a CareerBuilder.co.uk survey. Twenty-six per cent of full-time employees plan to change jobs in 2014; additionally 23 per cent haven’t decided if they will stay with their current employer or pursue another.
The national survey was conducted online in January 2014 and included a representative sample of 1,000 employees across industries and company sizes. While 43 per cent of workers report that they are not actively looking for new employment, they would be open to a new job if a good opportunity presented itself.
Job Satisfaction vs. Dissatisfaction
What is driving workers to explore other possibilities? One in ten workers say they are dissatisfied with in their current role and point to concerns around value, salary, and growth. Still, 48 per cent of workers claim they are satisfied with their current jobs mostly because of their coworkers and a good work/life balance. Twenty per cent are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied.
Those who are dissatisfied cite the following concerns:
- Don’t feel valued in their current position – 73 per cent
- Salary – 65 per cent
- No training/learning opportunities – 41 per cent
- Don’t like their boss – 36 per cent
Those who are satisfied cite the following reasons:
- Like the people they work with – 59 per cent
- Good work/life balance – 53 per cent
- Salary – 34 per cent
- Quick commute – 31 per cent
“Offering frequent recognition, merit bonuses, training programs and clearly defined career paths are important ways to show workers what they mean to the company,” said Scott Helmes, Managing Director of CareerBuilder UK. “In general, however, when more workers change jobs it’s usually a sign the labor market is improving. During the recession, fewer people voluntarily left jobs because the chances of finding a new or better one were low compared to a healthier economic cycle. That trend seems to be slowly beginning to shift.”
Employee Retention
With more than half of their workforce potentially heading out the door this year, employers will look to adjust their retention strategies to save some of their top talent. When asked what is the best way for a company to increase employee retention workers responded with the following:
- 1. Increase salaries – 65 per cent
- 2. Offer flexible work schedules – 53 per cent
- 3. Increase employee recognition – 50 per cent
- 4. Survey employees regarding company changes and work with them to implement a few – 45 per cent
- 5. Increase training/learning opportunities – 43 per cent
- 6. Hire additional workers to ease workloads – 27 per cent
- 7. Carve out specific career paths and promote more – 25 per cent
- 8. Provide telecommuting – 22 per cent
About CareerBuilder.co.uk
CareerBuilder UK is one of the most visited online job sites in the United Kingdom. Owned by Gannett Co., Inc (NYSE: GCI), Tribune Company, and The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MNI), CareerBuilder.co.uk powers the career centres for hundreds of UK sites that reach national, local, industry and niche audiences. CareerBuilder and its subsidiaries operate in the United States, Europe, South America, Canada and Asia. For more information, visit www.careerbuilder.co.uk.
