Most American workers are dissatisfied with their employment, but unwilling to do anything about it, according to a September study conducted by employee-and-customer-feedback company Minneapolis-based Modern Survey.
The most recent version of the biannual study found that 70 percent of employees are either disengaged or underengaged at their job – the highest percentage recorded since the company began tracking the numbers in 2007. The results of the survey, which interviewed 700 working adults who were selected to reflect census data in terms of age, gender and region, were released Oct. 10.
The number of fully engaged employees also fell, hitting a record low of 8 percent compared to one year ago when 15 percent of the work force was fully engaged.
However, the study found that only 21 percent of workers said they are currently looking for a new job at a different organization.
"Employees discouraged with their current job may not be looking for a new job because there are no openings in their field, or they would have to take a wage decrease" said Rob Grunewald, associate economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, in the release.
The engagement components that showed the biggest erosion were "discretionary effort," down to 48 percent in the most recent study from 58 percent favorable in August 2010, and "belief in the future of the organization," which dropped to 34 percent in September from 48 percent favorable last year.
The survey items, "I have confidence in the future of my company/organization" and "My company/organization is headed in the right direction," were most highly associated with respondents' engagement levels. This mirrored results from the February study that found faith in the overall health and direction of the organization became the new top predictor of employee engagement, replacing such predictors as recognition/appreciation, career development and personal accomplishment.
Current economic conditions might be affecting employee attitudes, Grunewald said.
"When there is uncertainty about future economic conditions, consumers and businesses hunker down. Consumers tend to keep the job that they have and are cautious with their spending … while businesses are holding back on making investments," he said in the release.
Results of the survey are available at
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