With many employees using the pandemic as an opportunity to reassess their employment status and realign their professional and personal priorities, organizations are facing a new threat: the ‘Great Resignation’. A new survey report from MetLife explores the emerging risks in this area.
Research for the Re:Me report shows that 54 percent of employees are considering leaving their job in the next 18 months and 59 percent will start looking for a new job if their work values aren’t accommodated. More than half of employees are considering leaving their job in the next 18 months
Key findings in the Re:Me report include:
Employees
- 54 percent of employees are considering leaving their job in the next 18 months
- 59 percent of employees have admitted that they will now start looking for a new job if their work values aren’t accommodated
- Two in five (39 percent) employees would stay if their employer demonstrated more care for their mental wellbeing
- 32 percent of employees feel that the relationship with their employer has been weakened as a result of COVID-19
- 25 percent of employees admitted that their employer’s response to COVID-19 has either ‘somewhat or significantly weakened the trust between employers and employees’
- 65 percent of employees rank higher pay as most important, followed by job security (62 percent)
- One in two (50 percent) workers admit they’d be willing to sacrifice more of their basic salary to get a personalised employee benefits package
- Seven in ten (71 percent) employees now feel ‘employers have a social responsibility to them’.
Employers
- 67 percent of employers confirmed their current employee benefits packages are being changed to support employee’s needs
- 72 percent of employers and 62 percent of employees agree the pandemic has changed their relationship
- 64 percent of employers have been ‘promoting benefits more during and since the pandemic’.
Adrian Matthews, EB Director at MetLife UK, comments: “It’s clear that employees’ values and priorities both personally and professionally have changed as a result of the pandemic. A chance to reflect and step back, 2021 has given employees the opportunity to make moves if they feel their needs are not being met. While a certain amount of change after such a lifechanging year is inevitable employers can’t afford their best talent to walk away, especially in cases where they could have done something to stop it.
“For years businesses have believed that higher pay and job security was the answer to a multitude of problems for employees and why good pay will naturally remain a draw for employees, demonstrating care for an employee’s physical, mental and emotional wellbeing will play an important part in guaranteeing an employee’s loyalty for the long term.”
“Ensuring that the benefit packages employers offer suits all members of the team is crucial to protect productivity and encourage loyalty for the long term. Our research found that more than two thirds (69 percent) of employees ‘will work harder for an employer who provides employee benefits that support my individual needs’. Employers must recognise how the needs of their employees will have changed in the past 12 months and work with them to find practical solutions that can be introduced quickly.”
