Happiness amongst UK offices workers has remained static for three quarters at 79%, leaving 21%, around 6 million, unhappy with their working lot.
Given the ongoing doom and gloom about the fragility of the economy, we revisited the issue of career confidence in April 2008 and were surprised to learn that there was little change since November 2007. Over a quarter, 26%, told us they were more confident about their career prospects for 2008 than a year ago, compared with 24% in November.
In addition, we investigated the issues of commitment and loyalty to employers with some dramatic results. Some 82% of respondents felt unable to agree with the statement 'I have confidence in my organisation's top management team'. Over a third (34%) told us they would not think twice about leaving their current role if another opportunity came along.
This raises important issues for employers around retention of their best talent. And it seems that there's much work to be done. Less than a fifth (18.8%) said that they felt 'optimistic about my career prospects with my current employer'. Less than one in ten (9%) agreed with the statement 'my employer has given me clear objectives and outlined a clear career path for me'.
As the Happiness at Work Index grows in the breadth of its questioning, what's emerging is a picture of a fickle UK office workforce and employers struggling to tackle issues around motivation, career development and retention.
Read more about the index »