Employee Well Being Focus
Trends and Challenges in the Global Job Market
As workplace trends evolve, keeping abreast of the latest patterns and challenges in the labour market can help organisations manage their workforces, increase resilience and remain competitive. It can also help inform decisions about recruitment and retention strategies. Here are four trends influencing the global job market today:
• Skills shortages – Advances in technology and evolving industry need shave exposed talent gaps and created skills shortages for organisations across sectors. According to Microsoft and LinkedIn learning research, 80% of employers feel that graduates aren’t fully equipped with the skills they need to be ready for work. Therefore, organisations should invest in employee training to address pressing skills gaps. Organisations could also recruit new employees with strong “soft skills,” such as resilience and adaptability, which are essential in the face of change.
• Cross-border recruitment -To address the skills shortages, organisations ore increasingly, widening their recruitment searches to include international talent pools. Cross border recruitment can help employers draw on niche skills that may be unavailable on home soil, enhancing their competitiveness. However, employment laws between countries can vary, so organisations must scrutinise all regulations to ensure compliance when leveraging cross boarder recruitment.
• Remote Working – The COVID 19 pandemic fundamentally changed the traditional work structure and opened the door for remote and hybrid work patterns, which remain popular today, However these work patterns can pose challenges especially concerning collaborative work, communication and productivity. Organisations can address these challenges by investing in communication and time management tools and developing robust remote working policies.
• Automation and artificial intelligence (AI) – Evolving technologies such as AI are transforming industries. In fact 42% of business tasks will be automated by 2027, according to a World economic forum’s future of jobs report. If they haven’t already employers must develop a strategy that balances AI’s benefits with its potential impact on their workforces.

Helping Employees Feel Heard
Employees who feel disregarded and don’t have a voice may be more likely to get frustrated, feel burnt or even quit. In fact a study by a management company found that underappreciated employees are twice as likely to quit than workers who feel appreciated. Furthermore, employees who don’t feel heard may be less likely to raise workplace concerns which could negatively impact safety and result in accidents or compliance issues. In contrast, allowing employees to have a say in how thigs are done helps give them a sense of control over their work life, which can improve employee well being and loyalty. Consider these ways to help employees feel heard.
• Encourage communication – Employees may struggle to raise concerns directly with their employers which poses a significant problem for organisations, If employees aren’t willing to provide direct feedback, employers will remain unaware of potential workplace problems. Therefore its crucial that employers proactively ask for employee feedback. For the best results this should be done through multiple channels, such as internal surveys and one on one meetings with supervisors.
• Respond to employee concerns – Employees are unlikely to provide feedback if they believe their opinions will be ignored or not lead to actionable change. Employers must embrace constructive criticism by actively listening to employees, addressing concerns and being transparent about workplace decisions.
• Focus on employees as people – Showing employees that they’re appreciated goes a long way towards them making feel their opinions matter. Employers can show employees they’re valued by allowing them autonomy in certain areas, for example, employers may offer flexible scheduling , remote work options or employee growth opportunities beyond mandatory training. Such growth can be encouraged through mentoring or education opportunities.
• Educate supervisors – Leadership plays a crucial role in making workers feel heard. Managers and supervisors should be encouraged to view feedback as constructive criticism, not personal attack. Additionally, ensuring leaders understand critical aspects of emotional intelligence, such as active listening, body language and eye contact, can ensure employees don’t feel dismissed or ignored when voicing concerns.
Employees who feel heard and appreciated may show increased loyalty and engagement, bolstering retention rates and organisational productivity. Contact us today for additional workforce well being resources.