Overworked Employees Ready To Job Hop

Some disturbing new research indicates that job hopping will heat up as the economy improves.  Employees feeling overworked is one big reason why.

But more troubling is that many workers have simply lost trust in their employers.

That loss of trust is the over-arching message in the results of a Deloitte survey, which indicated that 34% of employees plan to look for a new job when the economy improves.

Why are they planning to leave?

  1. Almost half (48%) of those hoping to jump ship say they no longer trust the company they work for.
  2. 46% cited a “lack of transparency” in communications from management
  3. 40% said they’d been treated unfairly or unethically by their employers.

In another study by office design firm Regus, 40% of U.S. professionals confirmed the results of the Deloitte survey.  They were looking for a new job due to a lack of communication and involvement by top management. Another 37% were disappointed in the lack of promotion despite good work results. Twenty-eight percent lacked confidence in their co-workers’ competence.

It’s clearly not surprising that employees feel overworked with the kinds of productivity gains business has experienced as a result of the belt-tightening many organizations implemented over the past two or three years.

But losing trust in their employers? That’s a far more unsettling issue. There’s clearly a communications disconnect here.

It’s time to take a good hard look at the quantity and quality of the information employees receive. Perception is everything and nothing helps keep workers in the loop more than regular performance feedback. Management may think that corporate memos, an employee website, and pizza parties satisfy the needs of employees. But in this day and age, it’s like bringing a knife to a gunfight.  Without feedback and communication coming directly from a manager on an ongoing and regular basis, the trust gap will persist and the threat of job hopping will continue.

Management may well think it’s doing an adequate job of keeping workers in the loop and reassuring employees it’s doing all it can to make sure everybody will keep their jobs. But in the end, perception is everything. And it sure seems that for a substantial number of employees, the message just isn’t getting through.

 (For a look at the full Deloitte survey, go here.)


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Ira S Wolfe

Comment

  1. Egrove staffing December 23, 2010 at 5:20 am -

    this is exact that the plan third that the companies are not treat the employee in a good way and lack of communication with the top companies too a reason. this is true in this current employees world. goof info.

  2. Matt Angello December 21, 2010 at 6:23 am -

    Nice post, Ira. Strong cautionary tale for those employers who want to hear it. Keep up the great writing!