New research shows
Around 6.5m UK workers are unhappy at work and would switch jobs for better benefits, according to new research from employee benefits and perks platform Perkbox.
The unhappiest workers are in Yorkshire and the Humber where just two in five (42per cent) claim not to be happy while the happiest workers hail from the East Midlands with a whopping 80per centclaiming to be happy.
In London, nearly half (48 per cent) of workers would be likely to switch to a job that offered better benefits and overall women are more likely than men to consider work/life balance an important factor in switching jobs (41 per centvs 35 per cent).
Happiness increases steadily during the working week, with almost a third (31 per cent) saying they rate happiness as either poor or very poor on Mondays compared to Tuesdays (19 per cent), Wednesdays (12 per cent), Thursdays (11per cent) and Fridays (eight per cent).
As well as lack of reward and recognition in the workplace, UK workers reported that a toxic negative culture at work was their biggest grievance (cited by 21per centof respondents) while 17 per cent highlighted micro management and 15 per cent said long hours.
The research showed that more men than women would tell their boss if they are unhappy at work (69 per cent vs 5 7per cent) while older workers (55+) are more likely to tell their boss if they are unhappy than younger workers.
Perkbox’s research also showed that one in five (20 per cent) workers believe their boss would be moderately or not at all supportive if they told them they were unhappy in their jobs. Younger workers feel more supported by their bosses than the older generation, with two thirds (66 per cent) of 18 – 24 year olds believing that if they told their bosses they were unhappy, they would be either moderately or very supportive, compared with just 49 per centof 55 – 64 year olds.
While most UK workers are relatively positive about their boss overall, with 15per centsaying their boss is ‘fantastic’, 16 per cent or 3.4m UK workers suggested they have either ‘poor’ or a ‘terrible’ boss.
Saurav Chopra, CEO and xo-founder at Perkbox, said: “This research indicates the scale of unhappiness in workers within UK businesses, and goes some way into revealing some of the causes of the nation’s general productivity issues. A single disengaged worker, irrespective of sector, can cost a business over £3K annually in sick leave, lost productivity, training and recruitment. This cost spirals into six figures if the organisation employs over a 1,000 people. Investment in employee health, well-being and engagement via perks and benefits is often perceived as a costly, non-critical ‘nice-to-have’ rather than an intrinsic tool for incentivising, retaining and recruiting talent.
“Yet most research already in the public domain indicates that while remuneration might instantly gratify and sway potential employees into accepting a job offer, it’s the non-financial factors that come with reward and recognition that engages and retains workers in the long run. Satisfied workers yield dividends in terms of engagement, loyalty and morale. Quite simply, happy teams accomplish great things.”
Leave a Comment