A Quarter of Employees want to Change Jobs this Year

A new poll of 2,000 UK employees, by HR and payroll software provider Ciphr, has found that nearly a quarter (24%) are actively job hunting or planning to change employers soon.

Nearly a third (32%) of workers under 34, and 30% of 35-44-year-olds, said they were (or will be) looking for different roles. This contrasts with around a fifth (22%) of 45-55-year-olds, one in seven (14%) 55-64-year-olds, and less than a tenth (7%) of those over 65.

Respondents planning to look for another position this year were asked their reasons why.

Feeling underpaid was the main driver for over a third (36%) of those who said they were considering a move, with 37% of women and 34% of men unhappy with their wages.

A further quarter (24%) said it was simply time to move on. While this doesn’t automatically signal job dissatisfaction, it’s likely. Given that most survey respondents who selected this reason for wanting, or needing, to change their role also listed multiple other factors.

The same number of people (24%) also want to quit due to a lack of recognition for their contributions, which is known to affect performance, morale, and engagement. Again, more women than men reported this. Over one in four (28%) surveyed women, compared to one in six (17%) surveyed men, cited feeling undervalued at work as a big motivator for wanting to leave their jobs.

A lack of job growth was also reported by more women than men, with 24% of female employees (vs 18% of male employees) having to seek employment elsewhere for the career progression, promotion opportunities and management responsibilities they want (as their current employer can’t accommodate them).

Other common reasons for seeking a new role include a desire for a more fulfilling career (23% of those surveyed), not enjoying their job (22%), feeling bored and unengaged (17%), wanting a better work-life balance (17%), wanting to reduce work stress and workload (16%), and poor leadership (16%).

A lack of job growth was also reported by more women than men, with 24% of female employees (vs 18% of male employees) having to seek employment elsewhere for the career progression, promotion opportunities and management responsibilities they want (as their current employer can’t accommodate them).

Other common reasons for seeking a new role include a desire for a more fulfilling career (23% of those surveyed), not enjoying their job (22%), feeling bored and unengaged (17%), wanting a better work-life balance (17%), wanting to reduce work stress and workload (16%), and poor leadership (16%).

Around one in seven (15%) want to gain new knowledge and skills, and the same number of people said they wanted to be able to work at home more of the time (15%).
Claire Hawes, chief people and operations officer at Ciphr, says: "These findings should be a wake-up call for employers. Around a third of workers under 45 want to switch jobs, with many saying they’re feeling underpaid and undervalued. That’s highlighting problems that are very fixable. People aren’t leaving because they hate the work… they’re leaving because they don’t feel recognised or seen."