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U.S. Worker Confidence Index™ Remains Stable in Q4 2018, Shows Year-over-Year Increase From 2017

Businessman hand pushing business graph on touch screen interfacePHILADELPHIA, PA – After a rebound in Q3 2018, American workers’ confidence remained relatively stable in Q4 2018 and saw a 2.6-point year-over-year rise compared to 2017, according to the national Worker Confidence Index™ (WCI), a survey of U.S. workers from HRO Today Magazine and Yoh, the leading international talent and outsourcing company owned by Day & Zimmermann. The Index gauges workers’ perceptions of the four key aspects of worker confidence: the perceived likelihood of job loss, the perceived likelihood of a promotion, the perceived likelihood of a raise, and the perceived overall trust in company leadership.

While the WCI increased from 104.5 in Q4 2017 to 107.1 in Q4 2018, it did decline slightly from Q3 2018 by 0.3 points. This is driven by the four factors that comprise the WCI each reporting a mixed result. For the year overall, only trust in company leadership saw a decline, from 105.1 in Q4 of 2017 to 103.3 in Q4 of 2018. Each of the other three reported increases in 2018 compared to 2017, with perceived likelihood of a promotion increasing by more than 5 points year-over-year. Perceived job security and perceived likelihood of a raise rose by 2.9 points and 4.2 points year-over-year, respectively.

“Despite some ups and downs during the past 12 months, 2018 was an encouraging year for businesses and their employees as evidenced by the latest WCI results. However, with workers feeling more confident in their careers, it does mean that highly skilled and available talent is becoming more and more scarce,” said Jonathan Grosso, Senior Vice President, Enterprise Solutions, Yoh. “Because of this, employers must work harder to retain their talented staff. Through appropriate compensation, company culture and workplace transparency, managers must actively ensure that their workers are satisfied with their careers.”

 

Other takeaways

  • Workers remain secure about job stability as unemployment rate nears historic lows
    • Employees’ concerns about losing their jobs is one of the most telling factors in estimating worker confidence about their current and near-term financial outlook. In Q4 2018, the job security index rose to an all-time high of 105.2.

  • Worker perceptions about likelihood of a raise increases by 1.1 points for the year
    • In Q4 2018, nearly one-third (29.3%) of survey respondents indicated that they expected a raise of 3 percent or more at their next review. This resulted in an increase in workers’ perceived likelihood of a raise to 107.2 in Q4 2018 from 106.8 in Q3 2018. However, this figure did decline slightly (0.4 points) since the start of the year.

  • Workers’ perceived likelihood of a promotion fell in Q4 but is up 5.3 points year-over-year
    • The Likelihood of Promotion Index declined in Q4 2018 to 112.7 from 113.7 in Q3 2018 with men feeling a promotion is more likely than women (25.7% vs. 18.3%). Respondents with annual incomes between $75k and $100k felt the most optimistic about the likelihood of promotion, with 25.8% believing a promotion was likely.

To view the entire study, please visit:, http://www.yoh.com/hro-today-employee-well-being-study.

 

 

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