A Gallup poll released Monday finds a record-low 50% of U.S. employees thriving in their lives, increasing the risk of unhappy workers and hostile workplaces.
An additional 45% of workers said they’re struggling, and 4% described themselves as suffering. Those numbers are the worst since the polling company began tracking employee life satisfaction in 2009.
“Employee thriving has implications for workplaces and business performance,” said Ryan Pendell, a senior workplace science editor at Gallup. “Employers who develop a culture of well-being are likely to see benefits across organizational outcomes.”
Mr. Pendell pointed to broader data showing that thriving employees have 53% fewer sick days and are 32% less likely to seek a different job.
According to Gallup, the share of thriving employees peaked at 61% in 2016 and 2017 and began declining in 2020.
The company noted it rebounded briefly in January 2021 as COVID-19 vaccinations became available.
Overall, the share of employees who say they’re thriving has fallen steadily in Gallup’s measure since President Biden took office that month. That tracks with multiple reports that inflation has outpaced wages during his tenure.
Responding to the latest survey, 37% of employees said they felt respected at work, 28% said they “very often” or “always” feel burned out on the job, and just 24% strongly agreed with the statement that their organization cares about their “overall well-being.”
The survey also asked, “Did you experience the following feelings during A LOT OF THE DAY yesterday?”
More than half of workers responding cited “stress,” 40% mentioned “worry,” 22% flagged “sadness,” and 18% named “anger.”
Gallup conducted a randomized national web survey of adults who work full-time or part-time for U.S. organizations. The results were weighted to correct for nonresponse bias.
• Sean Salai can be reached at ssalai@washingtontimes.com.
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