Phillip Tusing from Destination Talent has posted an excellent blog article around the high number of Australian’s not liking their jobs. In a recent Gallup Survey, only 18% of the staff are interested in the job they are doing? And yet, according to Gallup this is the prevailing trend in workplaces across Australia. This is a staggering number yet one that does not surprise me.
In a survey Six Figures undertook late last year, “What You Need to Know About Attracting & Retaining High Salary Earners“, a very large 75% of high salary earners would be willing to take a salary cut to do a different job. These figures seem to align with the Gallup poll.
Clearly staff engagement is the problem – so what is the solution. There are many elements that contribute to this. One that I have seen to be an ongoing problem amongst high salary earners in particular is that they want to do a job different to what they have done before, however the recruitment process in many businesses is geared towards hiring someone who has done the same job before. As such to get a job they have to take a job that they are unlikely to enjoy.
In the eyes of the business and the recruiter they perceive the risk of making a bad hire to be diminished through this approach. The reality is contrary to this, yet still this approach to hiring dominates. As a result we have such a large number of people who are not engaged at work.
A new 21st century mindset and approach is required if businesses are serious about talent attraction and retention.
What are your thoughts on the subject? Why do you think most employees don’t like their jobs? Does the recruitment process need to change? What are your suggestions?
