A fifth of workers in the UK are at high risk of leaving their jobs next year, with a further 12% seeing themselves leaving within two years, according to data gathered from UK employers looking at potential UK attrition in 2024.
Research by employee engagement provider Culture Amp analysed “Commitment to Stay” data from responses to 9 million questions answered by employees across 1,000 organisations across the UK.
At 20%, the potential UK attrition rate reflects the global picture, with 18% of US workers, 19% of workers in Australia and 23% in Germany also looking to move on in 2024.
By analysing how employees respond to statements such as “I am actively looking to move on” or “I see myself still working with the same company in two years”, Culture Amp’s people scientists have identified the warning signals that help predict groups are at risk of leaving and why.
In the UK, the top three drivers for people to stay in their current job are:
- high levels of collaboration to get the job done
- feeling informed about what’s happening at the company, and
- seeing how the work people are doing is making a positive impact.
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Jessica Brannigan, lead people scientist for Culture Amp, said: “In today’s environment of tightening budgets, most companies simply cannot afford to lose this proportion of talent, especially their high-performing ones.
“Yet, an uncertain economy and budgetary constraints make it hard for many organisations to promise more to their employees or invest heavily in their development.
“By providing open and honest communication, employers can provide the collaborative opportunities, transparency and trust that UK employees value to maintain high levels of engagement.”
When taking costs such as recruitment fees, productivity and team impact into account, Culture Amp estimated the cost of replacing an employee starts at 30%, rising to 200% for top performers.
Given the average salary in the UK in 2023 was £34,963, employers face substantial costs of between £10,500 and £70,000 per employee to replace talent.
Culture Amp monitors employee sentiment of more than 25 million workers across 6,500 companies globally.
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