Employees Confident Heading Into 2016

January 5, 2016 –

Fifty-eight percent of global employees believe the economic situation in their country will improve in 2016, according to the latest findings of the Randstad Workmonitor survey. Employees in Australia are the most positive (90 percent) while those in Chile and Greece are the least hopeful (35 percent and 19 percent, respectively).

Although expectations are high, only 51 percent of respondents expect to receive a raise and 48 percent to receive a financial bonus at the end of the year. Despite this, 71 percent of respondents expect their employer to perform even better in 2016.

The report also found that 42 percent of employers have an increasing need for workers within the science, technology, engineering, and math fields. More than two thirds of the respondents (67 percent) agree that their employer should invest more in developing digital skills.

But for employers, finding the right talent remains elusive. Fifty-seven percent of global respondents point out that their employer has trouble finding the right talent; they expect it to become increasingly difficult for their employer to find talent in the future. In Hong Kong, 73 percent of respondents think it’s difficult to source the right talent while just 37 percent of respondents from Norway, at the other end of the scale, thought finding talent would continue as a persistent challenge.

Other recent reports also found employers having difficulty sourcing talent. ManpowerGroup‘s recent ‘Talent Shortage Survey’ found that 32 percent of U.S. employers reported difficulties filling job vacancies due to talent shortages. Globally, the study found that the percentage of employers experiencing difficulties continues to rise, increasing from 36 percent in 2014 to 38 percent in 2015.

Manpower reports the most severe talent shortage is in Japan (83 percent). Around two in three employers report difficulty filling jobs in both Peru (68 percent) and Hong Kong (65 percent), while talent shortages are an issue for 61 percent of employers in both Brazil and Romania.

According to the latest ‘Recruiter Nation Survey’ released by Jobvite, 56 percent of recruiters cite the lack of available skilled talent as a key stumbling block in hiring. The report, which polled over 1,400 executive recruiting and human resources professionals, also found that 95 percent of recruiters anticipate equal or increased competition for talent in 2016.

To make finding good talent an even more difficult task, Randstad’s Workmonitor survey also found that employees who expect to find another job within the next six months dropped in the last quarter. However, increases were recorded in Malaysia (+5), Canada, Chile and Hong Kong (+3). Contrary to these increases, declines were found in France (-9), and India and Turkey (-7).

The number of employees worldwide who actually changed jobs in the last six months went down to 22 percent compared to 24 percent in the last quarter. India, Portugal, Turkey, Austria, Australia and Malaysia had the highest activity of job changes during the last six months.

The appetite to change jobs increased in Greece, Singapore, Slovakia, Denmark, China and Norway compared to last quarter. The U.K., Italy, India, Czech Republic, Brazil, Poland and Japan showed a decrease. Employees in Luxembourg and Portugal have the lowest appetite to change jobs.

Another report showed a much more lively forecast for workers looking to change positions. According to the ‘Employee Development Survey’ released by Saba and WorkplaceTrends.com, one third of U.S. and U.K workers plan to change jobs in the next six months.

If a worker is planning a career change, however, now seems to be the best time to do so. The recently released annual hiring survey by DHI Group found that 61 percent of HR managers and corporate recruiters anticipate more hiring in the first half of 2016 as compared to the second half of 2015. In the next six months, 17 percent of companies surveyed plan to hire 30 percent or more professionals, up five percentage points from the prior year.

Manpower’s latest Employment Outlook Survey found similar results, recording its strongest outlook heading into the New Year since 2007. Of the nearly 59,000 employers interviewed in 42 countries and territories across the globe, employers anticipate an increase in staffing levels in 39 countries and territories. Hiring prospects strengthen in 23 of 42 countries and territories, says Manpower.

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