Dive Brief:
- American workers' overall confidence remained stable in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2018 and increased by 2.6 points from 2018 to 2017, according to a survey from Yoh, an international talent and outsourcing company, and HRO Today Magazine. The survey measured worker confidence in four areas: perceived likelihood of job loss, perceived likelihood of a promotion, perceived likelihood of a raise, and perceived overall trust in company leadership.
- The results showed a five-point increase in the perceived likelihood of a promotion in 2018. Perceived likelihood of both job security and a raise increased by 2.9 points and 4.2 points year-over-year, respectively, the survey showed.
- The only area that showed a decline in confidence year-over-year was company leadership, which decreased from 105.1 in Q4 of 2017 to 103.3 in Q4 of 2018.
Dive Insight:
Employee confidence held steady, even rising slightly in some areas, but are employers able to deliver on their expectations? With the labor market as competitive as it is, experts have predicted that wage growth in 2019 will remain stagnant, which could dash workers expectations to earn more money. Employers also reported only a slight budget increase for raises planned for the year, according to Mercer. Keeping this in mind, employers that do offer competitive salaries and raises could gain a competitive advantage over other organizations vying for talent. For HR professionals, this could start with a reevaluation of their organizations' compensation strategies.
Employers hoping to win over talented candidates should also note workers' decline in company trust. An employer doesn't have to be recovering from a big, organizational scandal to lose the trust of its workforce — it can stem from a misuse of employee data or a general opacity from leadership about its decision making. Building a collaborative culture that strives for transparency could help employers gain back lost trust or earn workers' trust, which might help HR head off morale and turnover problems.