The No. 1 reason for leaving a company today is a Toxic or negative work environment, according to employees!

?? The top reasons workers left their jobs in 2023 revolved around the employee experience (EX).

??In my other LinkedIn post this week and based on research published by 德科集团 , employees are more likely to stay in their organizations this year (+12%) and less likely to leave (+11%) but 35.7% left due to a toxic or negative work environment (the No. 1 reason for quitting), while unsatisfactory pay ranked only 7th on the list of reasons (20.3%).

?? There is a huge gap between the reasons given by employees and those given by employers for leaving.

Although just 13.3% of employers expect turnover at their organization to increase in the next three months, 46.9% of employers believe it will stay the same, according to a new interesting research published by iHire using data from a survey of 3,710 job seekers and 405 employers from 57 industries across the US in September and October 2023.

?Toxic work environment becomes No. 1 reason for leaving

Surprisingly, researchers found that the most popular reasons behind resignations were not related to compensation :

??Of the 43.3% of respondents who quit a job in the past year, 35.7% left because of a toxic or negative work environment.

??28.9% quit due to unhappiness with their manager or supervisor.

??Just 20.3% left due to unsatisfactory pay, down from 43.4% who said the same in 2022’s survey.

?? As you noticed, the effect of the manager in employee departures moved to second place in this study whereas some time ago many research put it in first place.

? Personal Reason is the top reason of leaving for Employers

Researchers have found that there is a huge gap between the reasons given by employees and those given by employers for leaving and the top are listed below:

?Personal reasons (health, family issues, etc.) - 49,3%

? Unsatisfactory Pay - 37,5%

? Unhappy with manager/Supervisor - 24,5%

? Poor Work/Life Balance - 17,6%

As we have seen, employees considered the toxic environment as the main reason for their departure from the company, HR and Business leaders think rather that it is for personal reasons that employees leave and the second reason is compensation.

• Reasons for staying in companies :

Unsurprisingly, researchers found that pay raise topped the list, followed by flexibility and clear growth and advancement opportunities.

??Pay raise (53.3%)

??Flexibility (29.4%)

??Clear growth and advancement opportunities (28.6%)

??Training and professional development opportunities (27,7%)

These three responses echoed 2022’s most popular answers, although 71.8% selected pay raise in 2022, and growth and advancement opportunities (38.0%) ranked above flexibility.

?Compensation is the only retention plan

Researchers conclude that although compensation remains critical in retention efforts so a majority of employers have only given raises in the past year to retain their talents:

1?? Pay raises (65,2%)

2?? Bonuses (40,2%)

But the workforce is increasingly emphasizing job satisfaction and the employee experience (EX) and here are some of what today’s job seekers want:

3?? Given more meaningful employee recognition (34,3%)

4?? Allowed for more flexible schedules (33,8%)

5?? Given promotions (27,9%)

?Turnover will remain as it is!

Researchers predict a good news as just 13.3% of employers expect turnover to increase in the next three months, but 46.9% think it will stay the same.

??Finally researchers conclude that although compensation remains critical in retention efforts, and a majority of employers have given raises in the past year, the workforce is increasingly emphasizing job satisfaction and the employee experience and positive work environments, flexibility, work/life balance, and recognition are just a few desires of today’s job seekers.

?? But convincing an employee to stay is easier said than done!

Thank you ?? iHire researchers team for these insightful findings: Steve Flook

Dave Ulrich George Kemish LLM MCMI MIC MIoL

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