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Almost half of Canadian employees are ready to walk out the door

daftandbarmy

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Quick, lock the doors! ;)

Almost half of Canadian employees are ready to walk out the door — and that’s a big problem

Study finds 49% of workers are seriously considering leaving their job

It would appear that many Canadian workers are fed up and don’t want to take it anymore.

A study by recruitment firm Hays Canada, which looks at the sentiments of business and the labour force, has found a “significant disconnect between Canadian employers and employees.”

In fact, some of the findings were so worrying that it released the 2021 Hays Salary Guide two months early.
On the one hand most employers said they were confident about the economy and employment outlook heading into the last quarter of 2020. Fifty-five per cent of companies said they were back to business as usual and 19% saw themselves as growing after the worst of the pandemic slowdown.

The past six months, however, have taken a harsher toll on employees.

The lack of social interaction from remote working, increased workloads and a lack of support from their bosses have all weighed on workers.

The survey found that 49% of employees were seriously considering leaving their current role, a nine percentage point jump from last year. In some provinces it is even worse. Hays said it released its report two months early to draw attention to the fact that 52% of Ontario employees say they are ready to leave their jobs. In Quebec, it’s 54%.

The sinking spirits of employees are evident. Early in the year 81% of employees were positive about their well-being. That fell to 64% in the latest survey.

Nor do they appear to be getting much help, with 54% of employers admitting they were doing nothing to assist employees with their wellness or mental health.

“Canadian employers are navigating difficult headwinds but the growing number of employees who want to leave their role, even in the face of a tentative job market, is a big problem,” said Hays Canada president Travis O’Rourke. “COVID-19 has left everyone exhausted and while many businesses are improving, staff are waving a white flag.”

The short-term outlook isn’t much better. Hays found that employers were “treading water.” A third of those surveyed cut staff because of the pandemic and 71% froze salaries. In the future, they expect to just recoup the headcount rather than increase their workforces.

Only 19% plan to boost pay by more than cost of living increase and 29% plan no raises at all for the next year. In Alberta, 46% of employers plan no salary increases.

“Employers have been battling through the greatest global downturn since the Great Depression and as we’ve seen from the country’s jobs numbers, they’re primarily focused on rehiring and regaining lost ground,” said O’Rourke. “It’s good to see that we’re on the right path but it’s clear that things like raises, employee training and wellness spending could be on the back burner for some time.”

Hays is seeing evidence that unsupported employees are looking for other opportunities, he said. “Once we turn a corner on the pandemic or see more signs of job market strength, those employees are gone.”

And as the second COVID wave sweeps through and winter descends, you have to think this discontent will only get worse.

https://financialpost.com/executive/executive-summary/posthaste-almost-half-of-canadian-employees-are-fed-up-and-ready-to-walk-out-the-door-and-thats-a-big-problem-for-bosses

 
daftandbarmy said:
Quick, lock the doors! ;)

Almost half of Canadian employees are ready to walk out the door — and that’s a big problem

Study finds 49% of workers are seriously considering leaving their job

I wonder what the number would be with the CAF as a whole, and each element specifically.
 
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.........maybe.

How many of the employees polled have mortgages/families/defined pension plans/benefits etc.

Get it that 9 months into covid-19, there is discontent. I am seeing it now at work, not so much with our folks, but the level of incivility and expressed frustration over minor matters at some of the Zoom/Teams(choose your platform) meetings seem to be increasing, especially in the last month. The situation that has unfolded is wearing a lot of people down but.............Millennials were already mobile, judgmental, flighty, and not particularly loyal to a franchise/brand/ideal.
There is no context to the story ITO ages, employment history, skills etc etc. I would suggest that many people are staying put and/or riding it out.

Would I, as an unskilled 22 year old, who has lurched from job to job, now covid-19 constrained/unemployed say "Yeah, I'm considering leaving." Hell Yup

Polls, damned polls, and statistics
 
Lumber said:
I wonder what the number would be with the CAF as a whole, and each element specifically.

Getting paid $60k a year to sit at home? Priceless.
 
It says it's a 9% jump year-over-year, while that's a significant jump, the fact that 40% were considering leaving before COVID just kinda shows the grass ain't always greener yada yada...

I don't know where the info is coming from but our Comd has noted that COVID has been "good for retention" which aligns with what I would think is intuitive. Sure, it's probably bad on job satisfaction but doesn't mean it's not good for retention.
 
Had I known that Covid was coming, I would not have elected for early retirement. A combination of the Environmental Act changes and Covid has stopped any new potential projects in BC in their tracks, I was hoping to get a job in environmental consulting and the work is not there to justify existing staff, much less hire more. Think very long and very hard before you walk.
 
Weinie said:
Millennials were already mobile, judgmental, flighty, and not particularly loyal to a franchise/brand/ideal.

I’d suggest that, more precisely, we *reciprocate* loyalty shown by the employer. Where loyalty is shown, it is given. Where it is absent, that’s exactly what the employer gets back. That can also be further divided into loyalty to the employer versus loyalty to the individual working environment, inclusive of colleagues but more importantly supervisors. And I’d also argue that that isn’t necessarily transferable between levels. Someone might irk their *** off for a good boss, but that doesn’t mean affinity for the employer as a whole, and if the boss changes, they might leave. Similarly an employee who has been treated consistently well by the employer generally might still check out if the boss or colleagues suck.

I would chalk all of this up to a more transactional attitude towards employment, and perhaps an increased generational sense of agency and self-worth. This isn’t slagging any cohort; it’s just a generalization of what I see in mine.
 
You have to remember that half the country makes $15+/- so if your job is shit due to boss, fellow employees, the actual job itself, what exactly are you holding on for?

 
Before he retired a few years ago, my brother spent his entire career in the hospitality industry.  A perennial problem with service staff was retention.  They made no bones about that fact that, so long as they could cover next month's rent, once they saved up for a trip or some other diversion, they would simply not show up.  No notice - just gone.  Day-to-day staffing was a constant struggle.

In many industries, loyal is broken but I'm not sure who started it.  Futurist warned us years ago that the concept of a single 30+ year career with the same employer (let alone perhaps one your parent worked for) would decline significantly.  I wonder if the poll responders indicated they wanted to stop working 'there' or simply wanted to stop working period.
 
lenaitch said:
In many industries, loyal is broken but I'm not sure who started it.  Futurist warned us years ago that the concept of a single 30+ year career with the same employer (let alone perhaps one your parent worked for) would decline significantly.

My first employer ( other than the PRes ) was also my last.

Not sure loyalty had much to do with it. Lack of ambition, more likely.  :)

Sometimes I regret not following my father's, and his father's, occupational footsteps.

My sister joined the Regular Force and stayed in for the whole ride.

 
Halifax Tar said:
You get to sit at home ?

Depends on where you work, and what you do. I only go to the office about once a week, but I still head out on inspection trips as usual.
 
Dimsum said:
A good chunk of the NCR folks are working from home.

Downtown is a ghost town, it's weird.

Conversely, productivity has gone up for a lot of people.  The combination of workplace 2.0 and constant BS meetings and working groups were a real distraction and time suck; hopefully people don't back into their old habits when folks go back to the office. It used to take me about 60-90 minutes each way on the bus, and about 45 minutes each way for a 28 km commute in a car. Who is going to miss that part?

It does really suck for training new people, that is pretty painful. If you know your job and have normal access to the systems though, it's pretty sweet, but do miss seeing other human beings on occasion.

I would also echo that a lot of people now expect to work in a gig economy, where you don't have any loyalty to any one company by design. If there is a loyalty issue, it's on the employers, not the employees, and for the CAF, it's a strange dichotomy where people are surprised that people decide they don't like it and leave, when they have been told repeatedly to do exactly that by senior leaders. :dunno:

Would say there is a massive difference between people thinking about leaving and actually leaving though; I've actively applied for other jobs, but am still here. It's a safe option, but like to at least pretend that I'm here because I want to be, and not because I know it will pay the mortgage.
 
mariomike said:
My first employer ( other than the PRes ) was also my last.

Not sure loyalty had much to do with it. Lack of ambition, more likely.  :)

Sometimes I regret not following my father's, and his father's, occupational footsteps.

My sister joined the Regular Force and stayed in for the whole ride.

Other than part-time jobs as a teen, and a job at Eaton's waiting for my OPP application to go through, same here.  It helps to honestly like what you do and being able to evolve with whatever the profession is, since it will always change.  I had a low point where I did inquire with other forces (didn't get along with my boss) but worked through it.  Back then a big problem was pension portability.

Amassing the usual trappings of life such as mortgage, car payments, etc. helps to keep you grounded.  I don't begrudge people leaving.  Professions experienced from the inside can be different than when viewed from the outside, and staying for the wrong reasons is unhealthy both both parties.

My dad was an auditor with the federal government - following in his footsteps was not in the cards!
 
Dimsum said:
A good chunk of the NCR folks are working from home.

I wish we had that option available here, but given the mission reqmts (and the fact we are in the USA) we have actually ramped up hours at work. This dichotomy in work/life balance in a COVID environment between (some of) our INCAN friends and us causes some... predictable morale issues. It is especially evident for spouses, who can't really work as Childcare options aren't reliable, nor are schools (much like in Canada, due to COVID protocols). Unlike some places in Canada, the military members don't have telework flexibility (we have about 4 on telework out of ~150 members) and the spouses pay the price - and they speak to others spouses in Canada so this isn't a mystery.

Managing this dichotomy in addition to the domestic situation here in the USA is a significant leadership challenge. Coupled with an incredibly challenging APS, and that we left vacant some billets, we now need to address APS 21 and what that is going to look like. November 3rd will also not have an insignificant impact on both our extant workforce and our ability to "recruit" for APS 21.

Interesting times.
 
>Almost half of Canadian employees are ready to walk out the door

OK.  Where they gonna go?  To all those under-staffed employers offering well-compensated packages with awesome social engagement?
 
lenaitch said:
It helps to honestly like what you do < snip >

I think liking people, and sincere desire to help can satisfying. I don't mean saving lives. Just helping folks get through their day.

lenaitch said:
< snip > and being able to evolve with whatever the profession is, since it will always change.

Other than getting off shift work, there was only one major change for me. In 1980 I caught a lucky break and got off the cars and onto the bus and truck division. Lots and lots of cleaning. We kept them immaculate. Sometimes cleaning is a pleasant way to pass the time.

lenaitch said:
Professions experienced from the inside can be different than when viewed from the outside, and staying for the wrong reasons is unhealthy both both parties.

When I was a young boy ( back when the Earth was still cooling ), it seemed like nothing "big" ever happened. But, I remember once, seeing a lot of flashing red lights. I wanted to know what was going on. But, the only ones who did were the police. They knew.

Maybe, after a while, a police officer can see / experience / know so much that the "cumulative effect" can become overwhelming, for some?

lenaitch said:
I had a low point where I did inquire with other forces (didn't get along with my boss) but worked through it. 

Either that, or transfer to Moosonee. ( I guess? ) With us, it was Scarborough.  :(











 
Brad Sallows said:
>Almost half of Canadian employees are ready to walk out the door

OK.  Where they gonna go?  To all those under-staffed employers offering well-compensated packages with awesome social engagement?

Yup.

There are alot of ways to make money these days, while making a difference, that don't involve selling your soul for 25 years of golden handcuffs leading to a pension :)
 
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