Unhappy and unengaged employees are losing the UK £85bn a year
Disengaged employees in the UK are costing £85bn a year in lost productivity, according to a new study.
The proportion of workers who are actively involved and enthusiastic about their jobs in the UK is just 11 per cent, Gallup's State of the Global Workforce report found.
The results found that 68 per cent of UK employees are classified as "not engaged" with their jobs, which Gallup defines as "psychologically unattached to their work and company". A further 21 per cent were reported to be actively disengaged, denoting unhappiness at work.
The cost to the UK is estimated to be between £84.3bn and £87.2bn in lost productivity.
The proportion of engaged employees in the UK is lower than the global average, which was calculated at 15 per cent.
However it slightly beat the average for Western Europe, where only 10 per cent of employees are engaged.
In response to the findings, Gallup has called for annual performance reviews to be replaced by constant feedback, as well as encouraging the creation of stronger work relationships.
The report said there were many potential reasons for such a low level of global satisfaction at work, but that "resistance to change" had emerged as a major factor.
"In particular, organizations and institutions have often been slow to adapt to the rapid changes produced by the spread of information technology, the globalization of markets for products and labor, the rise of the gig economy, and younger workers’ unique expectations."