The Great Regret

Job vacancies in the UK hit a record high of almost one million in the first three months of this year, with half of British workers considering changing jobs, according to data reported in the Telegraph.?For the past year, experts?have been debating over who was quitting, their motivations for doing so and how companies should respond to The Great Resignation.?

New?studies are now showing The Great Resignation?has resulted for many as their Great Regret.

A study of 2,500 workers from job site?The Muse?found that almost three-quarters of respondents (72 %) experienced either 'surprise or regret'?that the new position or company they quit their job for had turned out to be 'very different'?from what they were led to believe. Nearly half (48%) of these workers said they would try to get their old job back, according to the Guardian.?

However, perhaps this response isn’t as surprising as it initially seems.

Data has suggested that Generation Z and younger Millennial employees have high expectations of their employers and the workplace in general. Generation Z, who will make up 27% of the workforce by 2025, are very values-driven. Diversity and inclusion is very important to them; ?and the group want an employer who aligns with their values - Bupa research found that 59% would turn down higher salaries to work with their preferred employer.

We’re also currently experiencing a time of high employee burnout. Google trends data shows searches for ‘burnout symptoms’ increased by 75% ?between early 2021 and 2022, and 248% since 2018. People are interested and looking for ways to deal with what they are facing.

The take home for employers? Continue to prioritise company culture, values and wellbeing. Focus upon your hiring and what your company has to offer. Be honest and realistic in doing so. Employers may not think that this is a tantalising enough to attract the talent they’re looking for - but given that recruiting and training new staff costs on average ￡27,600 according to Government figures, hiring workers with inflated expectations of what the job and company involves may end up costing dearly. 80% of the workers surveyed by?The Muse?said it was fine to leave a job within six months if it didn’t live up to their expectations.

It is also a crucial moment in what has been a very tumultuous few years, to review your policies on hiring former employees. Next time we look at an important part of your talent pipeline – boomerang employees.

MD Comment

With such high volumes of people changing roles this year it was inevitable some of these moves will have failed to work out as planned. Regretful moves are not as uncommon as you may think what is surprising is the suggested scale of those regretting their moves which will no doubt lead to additional moves in the fullness of time with the likelihood of vacancy numbers staying high as a result. Those who left on good terms with their previous employers should seek to contact them if a move back is appropriate and fits with your new career objectives. For those hiring the great regret represents a huge opportunity to engage with potential new hires. Canny employers will be acutely aware that not all moves work out as planned and will actively seek re-engage with “good leavers” as part of their hiring strategy.?