Dive Brief:
- 2025 is the year of the “eggshell economy,” as employees walk on eggshells in what feels like a fragile workplace environment, according to a May 14 report from BambooHR.
- Fifty-four percent of the more than 1,500 full-time salaried employees surveyed did not apply for any jobs in 2024; this was more pronounced among baby boomers, with 76% not seeking new opportunities, compared to 33% of Generation Z.
- Even among employees who weren’t satisfied with their job, 31% said they didn’t apply for work elsewhere, suggesting that low turnover rates within an organization “may be missing the bigger picture,” Tara Martell, BambooHR’s chief customer officer, stated in the report.
Dive Insight:
With the big picture in mind, the reality is that “very few open roles are out there relative to the available workforce, so competition is fierce,” Martell pointed out.
“Many candidates also complain about exhaustive interview processes or poor communication with recruiters,” Martell added. “Low turnover could just be a function of lack of opportunity,” she said.
BambooHR’s finding of low turnover is consistent with Eagle Hill Consulting’s April Employee Retention Index, which predicted employees will be more likely to remain in their roles over the next six months.
The Eagle Hill findings differed somewhat from what BambooHR found, in that the Eagle Hill index found Gen Z workers appeared to be the least likely to leave their jobs, while BambooHR found that baby boomers were more likely to stay.
Even so, Gen Z didn’t seem all that eager to leave, either. BambooHR’s survey found that among employees who did apply for new jobs, a mere 9% of Gen Z applied to more than 10 jobs, while 32% of Gen Z applied to just one or two jobs.
The trend in decreased hiring, job openings and turnover has been going on for several months, according to a previous report from BambooHR. Hiring, both globally and in the U.S., reached its lowest point in five years in December, the report found.
This somber outlook may account for workers being more anxious about job security, a sentiment reflected in both BambooHR’s May report and Eagle Consulting’s April retention index, despite employees telling BambooHR they were satisfied with their work-life balance, benefits and relationships with their bosses.
Driven by this anxiety, employees have been navigating the workplace in specific ways to prove they’re invaluable and to avoid being laid off, BambooHR said.
These strategies including actively working to ensure their contributions are visible to their entire team (73%); speaking up at meetings to make sure their efforts are recognized (46%); maintaining detailed project logs to safeguard their contributions (46%); and being available after hours, hoping to be perceived as committed workers (44%), according to BambooHR.
Additionally, 53% said they create “work barriers” as a way to make their roles harder to hand off, a strategy particularly prevalent among the “Hustle Generations,” with 42% of millennials, 34% of Gen X, and 39% of Gen Z maintaining exclusive control over key projects, the survey found.
Such behaviors can lead to work silos, toxicity and fear, Martell noted. “If your employees are creating ‘work barriers,’ it’s because they are scared. Start there,” she suggested.