ThinkTWENTY20

According to a recent Grant Thornton (US) survey, a total of 68.9 million workers left their jobs in 2021, with nearly 70% doing so voluntarily — a one-year record. “November and December were particularly volatile, with nearly 10 million workers quitting their jobs at year’s end.”

According to the survey, “the phenomenon shows little signs of slowing. While the unemployment rate continues to fall (4.0% in January and 3.8% in February, 2022), another 4.3 million people left their jobs in January. Clearly, today’s low unemployment and high job turnover indicates that employees are looking for and finding new working arrangements at an unprecedented level. This makes understanding what employees seek from their jobs particularly important today, as the “war for talent” is still at high pitch.

Attracting and retaining high-performing employees must be a priority for businesses to succeed. To find out what workers like and don’t like about their jobs, as well as what motivates them, the firm followed up on the findings of Grant Thornton’s first State of Work in America survey with a second survey, six months later. “Similar to the first, we asked questions to gauge worker attitudes about workplace experiences, but expanded this survey to uncover how employees’ attitudes and desires have been affected nearly a full year into the Great Resignation.”

Grant Thornton increased the reach of the current survey to include more than 5,000 American workers across a wide range of industries and demographics. As before, all the respondents are full-time workers who also receive benefits as part of their total compensation.

According to the survey report, the results “provide insights on how to win the talent war now, when employee turnover is still at record levels. Businesses cannot assume that traditional attractors of pay and job stability are enough to bring the people they want to their workplace. Our new State of Work in America survey reveals some key factors driving talent attraction and retention, including:

• Workplace flexibility — hybrid workplaces with an emphasis on being able to set one’s own schedule.
• Opportunities for career advancement emerges as a primary job attraction motivator.
• Autonomy in their own work.
• A delay in moving the hiring process along can be a strong deterrent to talent acquisition.
• Benefits not viewed as unique and differentiating will also be a problem.

Get the full report at American workers find their voice (grantthornton.com).