Today's post comes to us from the executive director of The Workforce Institute, Dr. Chris Mullen, Ph.D., SHRM-SCP, SPHR.
This week, we announced the results of a new survey we conducted with our friends at Workplace Intelligence looking at how employees around the world are feeling about their employers' response to the pandemic so far, and what the top concerns of those employees are as we move into 2021 and beyond.
One of the things I'm really excited about with this survey is that we reached out to employees and business leaders - nearly 4,000 of them - in 11 countries (Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, the U.K., and the U.S.) to get a truly global perspective. Given that COVID-19 is a global pandemic, considering this global perspective rather than just focusing on the U.S. is critically important.
So, how are employees feeling? Well, here's the hindsight part:
Only a fraction of employees (20%) felt that their organization met their needs during the initial months of the COVID-19 pandemic:
I think this data can be really instructive for employers. Focusing on providing your employees with the technology they need to be successful and communicating transparently are key. And as the pandemic continues to evolve in 2021 and beyond, employers should try to be as nimble as possible, reacting quickly to the changes and thinking about how to efficiently equip employees to deal with them.
Other key findings in the survey:
Burnout and concerns about job security and safety are weighing on workers:
Nearly half of employees globally (46%) say quick notification about confirmed COVID-19 cases in the workplace is their top concern.
This survey shows that we are living through a time of high anxiety about a number of issues - burnout, job security, job safety, physical safety. But one piece of really good news was this: a third of employees globally (33%) say they trust their employer more now than before the pandemic began because of how organizations reacted.
Strong bonds can be forged through difficult times. Camaraderie and loyalty flourish when we band together to succeed through adversity. This pandemic is terrible, and no one would have chosen to go through it, but given that we all have no choice, there is an opportunity here for employers to go the extra mile for employees, to give them the tools they need to be successful, to communicate openly and honestly, to show empathy and appreciation. Employers who do all this will come through this pandemic having built trust with their employees and will be better poised for success of all kinds as we move out of pandemic life and into what comes next.
*You'll notice we are now referring to ourselves as “The Workforce Institute at UKG” to reflect our recent merger. We like the sound of it and hope you do too!
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