I’ve highlighted job vacancy data in the US repeatedly showing the struggles to hire workers. The UK is facing a similar problem, as shown in new data released this week, with more job openings than ever … before last month. The number of people who are unemployed or out of the workforce is also higher than before the pandemic.
In that context Gartner published a report about the gaps in “future employee experience’. 66% of employees felt they had the required technology to “effectively work remotely,” compared to the vast majority of executives (80%).
76% of executives felt as though the company has “invested in providing them with resources that allow them to work the way they would onsite in a virtual environment,” yet only 59% of employees agreed with this.
50% agreed that company leadership has “expressed a preference for work conditions to return to their pre-pandemic model,” compared to 71% of respondent executives.
For context, Microsoft’s 2021 Work Trend Index found that 41 per cent of employees across the globe are considering leaving their current employer this year and 46 per cent say they’re likely to move because they can now work remotely.
And, let’s layer in mental health — 44% of workers say they feel fatigued on the job, up from 34% in 2020, per a study conducted by the human resources consulting firm Robert Half.
52% of U.S. employers say they are “experiencing significant workplace issues” with substance misuse or addiction by employees, according to a new survey from The Hartford. That’s up from 36% in March 2020.
31% of U.S. employers say workforce mental health is having a severe or significant financial impact on the company, up from just 20% in March 2020.
Why do we care?
There’s some notable divide in execs versus workers on work from home. My working premise continues to be the disconnect between workers and company leadership, and that continues to show out in the data.
I believe one can’t talk about the hiring problems without understanding the cultural shifts going on among people – IE, workers. It’s clear leadership doesn’t understand what’s going on there, that there are health strains – both pandemic and mental – that are changing workers attitude to work, and that with the labor shortage, workers have a whole lot more power. The data just says that.
Leaders who blindly ignore that will run into problems. Savvy operators will manage this new landscape, and even assist customers in their navigation… because technology is a component of the solution.