Fed up with meager raises and relentless demands to produce more with less, many of us are ready to bolt for a new job–when jobs open up.
What many workers are doing during the weak labor market is “corporate cocooning,” says Joyce Gioia, president of The Herman Group, management consultants in Greensboro, N.C. “They’re staying in the safety and security of their current jobs, waiting for a moment when they feel secure enough to spread their wings,” she said. “They’re just waiting for the right time to fly away.”
As unemployment has risen, voluntary turnover has dropped. According to BNA Inc., 15.6 percent of employees willingly left jobs in 2000, when the unemployment rate was 4 percent. Since the rate has risen by 50 percent–to 6.1 percent in August–just 8.4 percent of workers have chosen to leave.
Employers, however, shouldn’t take the lower turnover rates as a sign of contentment. Among the signs of employee restlessness:
– Only 30 percent of employees are truly loyal–in other words, committed to the company, motivated and not planning to seek other employment in the near future, a survey of 3,350 workers by Indianapolis-based Walker Information found. Thirty-four percent of workers were identified as high-risk employees who were neither committed to their jobs nor planned on staying in their positions for at least two years.
– Nearly half of U.S. middle managers are either looking or planning to look for a job, according to a survey by Accenture, a management consulting and technology company. The survey of 500 managers found that 38 percent are looking for a job and another 10 percent plan to when the economy recovers.
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– High performers are 32 percent more likely to be looking for a job in the next year than their low-performing co-workers, reports the New York-based Sibson Consulting. That’s because they’re more likely to feel under-rewarded and underappreciated, according to the company’s 2003 Rewards of Work survey, which interviewed more than 1,100 employees.
The study also found that it doesn’t take much to lure a large number employees away from their current job. For example, one-fourth of the workforce would leave their current job for a similar position if they were offered just 50 shares of a $10 stock. One-fourth of the workers also would take a job with another employer that offered them seven more days of vacation time.
“The danger is for those employers who have mistreated their employees or ignored their needs,” said Gioia. “We urge employers, whether they know their employees are looking or not, to start making moves to engage them. Ask them what they think. Make sure their goals are aligned with the organization. Take an interest in the individual.”
Speaking of pay . . .
Salary increases hit record lows in 2003, according to the Lincolnshire-based Hewitt Associates.
In its survey of 1,276 companies nationwide, exempt employees received salary increases averaging 3.4 percent, while non-exempt employees averaged increases of 3.3 percent. Executives averaged 3.5 percent increases. This year’s averages were the lowest salary increases recorded in Hewitt’s 27 years of analyzing such data.
Too casual for the boss
If you want to dress to impress the boss, leave the jeans at home. A survey found that “no jeans” tops the wish list of employee-attire changes that bosses would like to see.
Other dress-code changes that bosses favor: no tight or revealing clothing, no sweats, shorts or capri pants, and no flip-flop sandals. Bosses also wished more workers would wear suit jackets. The survey questioned 150 CEOs and was conducted by No Nonsense, part of Kayser-Roth Corp., a North Carolina-based legwear maker.