Almost 40 per cent of Australian workers say they want to switch employers in the next year, suggesting the nation is on the brink of the Great Resignation, according to a new report from PwC Australia.
Its survey of 1800 workers between September 20 and October 1 supports anecdotal evidence from employers – especially in the technology sector – that workers are chasing higher wages and new career opportunities as the economy rebounds after the pandemic.
The high expectations come off the back of Australian Bureau of Statistics figures showing that in the year to February, just under one million people or 7.5 per cent of employed people changed jobs, the lowest annual rate on record thanks to pandemic insecurity. Job mobility remained highest for professionals with 21 per cent changing jobs.
The PwC report, What Workers Want: How to Win the War on Talent, found that while 38 per cent wanted to move jobs, some workers are adopting an extremely short-term approach to their jobs: 60 per cent of those who left a job in the past year are keen to move on again in the next 12 months.
In contrast, 55 per cent say they expect to stay for at least five years.
Employers are worried: 73 per cent of senior leaders report problems attracting talent during the pandemic.
Yet about 50 per cent of companies have no intention of updating their employee offerings in areas such as training to counter the war for talent.
Remuneration and rewards ranked the highest in a list of what workers value, with 25 per cent citing this, followed by wellbeing (22 per cent) and experience (16 per cent).
The report says that the rising interest in wellbeing could be the result of the increasingly blurred lines between work and home, stress from the pandemic and impact on job security, as well as increased instances of loneliness and isolation. Some 85 per cent of workers reported mental health challenges in the past 18 months.
The report says that while workers value remuneration and wellbeing, earning a bonus or promotion often means working longer hours.
Nothing is changing more than work but the disruption in the workplace is not simply related to Covid-19.
