Four out of ten Irish employees are likely to switch jobs in the next year - amid rising workloads and an accelerating pace of change - says PwC’s Irish 2024 Workforce Hopes & Fears Survey
These are some of the key findings from PwC’s 2024 Irish Workforce Hopes and Fears survey published in Ireland today, one of the most comprehensive workforce studies of its kind, detailing the attitudes and behaviours of 1,000 Irish workers across four generations along with 56,000 workers across 50 countries. The survey explores areas such as employees’ concerns and aspirations, their perceptions and needs regarding upskilling and GenAI, their financial position as well as anticipated workplace trends in the year ahead. This press release deals with the Irish results in the survey.
With a growing mix of employee pressures, the survey findings suggest that Irish workers are alert to job opportunities elsewhere as they prioritise skills growth to accelerate their careers amid rising workloads and heightened workplace uncertainty. There is more work to do to fully embrace GenAI.
Job switching very high on the agenda as employees prioritise skills
Four out of ten (40%) Irish respondents report that they are likely to switch employer in the next 12 months (Global: 44%).
However, Irish employees are less attuned than global counterparts to the skills changes that are needed. For example, 27% of Irish employees are firmly of the view that the skills their job requires will change significantly in the next five years compared to 36% for global counterparts.
Significant increase in workloads as pace of change at work accelerates
In the last 12 months, 41% of Irish workers have experienced significant increases in workloads (Global: 45%). 60% have experienced an accelerating pace of workplace change (Global: 62%). Nearly a third (31%) noted that their daily responsibilities have changed to a large or very large extent (Global: 40%). At the same time, 64% say that it is extremely or very important that they can work flexibly (Global: 65%). 53% say they are likely to ask for a pay increase in the year ahead (Global: 63%) and 44% will ask for a promotion (Global: 54%).
While workers are willing to embrace change, Irish respondents are likely to underestimate its pace and impact. For example, just over a third (36%) say that technological change, including AI and GenAI, will impact their jobs to a very large or large extent in the next three years compared to nearly half (46%) for global counterparts.
Opportunity to upskill a significant factor in career decisions
Workers are placing a premium on skills growth to accelerate their careers. Nearly a quarter (24%) of Irish respondents say that their employer does not provide them with adequate opportunities to learn new skills that will benefit their future careers (Global: 21%). This is particularly important for workers considering leaving: 73% say that any decision to stay with their current employer or switch to a new one would be influenced by opportunities to learn new skills (Global: 77%).
But workers say they are ready for change: 76% of Irish employees feel ready to adapt to new ways of working (Global: 77%); 69% are excited about opportunities to learn and grow in their role (Global: 72%).
With four out of ten Irish employees saying that they are likely to consider a change of employer in the year ahead, the priority for employers is to engage with their employees along with providing as many opportunities for them to develop their skills in order to retain their key talent.
As workers face heightened uncertainty, rising workloads and ongoing financial stress, they are prioritising skills growth. Still more needs to be done by employers to fully embrace new and emerging technologies such as GenAI to turbocharge the growth and accelerate their employees’ careers. Employees are placing an increased premium on skills growth in an environment characterised by constant technological disruption. Employers must ensure that they are investing in their employees and technological platforms to mitigate employee pressures and retain the brightest talent.
GenAI is an important catalyst: more work to do to fully embrace GenAI in the workplace
As employees face heightened workplace pressures, they are also turning to new and emerging technologies such as GenAI to help. However, Irish workers see fewer opportunities for GenAI to support their growth in the workplace compared to global counterparts. For example, 65% of Irish survey participants expect GenAI to create opportunities to learn new skills at work (Global: 76%). Over half (51%) believe that GenAI will increase their efficiency at work in the next 12 months (Global: 61%). 54% say it will improve the quality of their work (Global: 72%).
At the same time, over a third (35%) of Irish respondents are of the view that GenAI will fundamentally change their profession within the next five years, but more global counterparts hold this view (40%). A similar proportion (35%) expect GenAI to lead to higher salaries, significantly lower than for global counterparts (51%).
The survey reveals that over half (54%) of Irish workers have not used GenAI tools in their workplace in the past 12 months, significantly higher than global counterparts (37%). Reservations about GenAI include: providing incorrect or misleading information (Ireland: 54%; Global: 52%); increasing bias in their organisation that impacts them (Ireland: 46%; Global: 52%); changing their work in a negative way (Ireland: 46%; Global: 47%) and increasing their workload (Ireland: 43%; Global: 50%).
The survey suggests that some employers will need to invest more heavily in GenAI technology training and access. For example, one-third (34%) of Irish workers don’t think that there are opportunities to use the technology in their line of work (Global: 33%), while 26% don’t have access to GenAI tools at work (Global: 24%) and 29% don’t know how to use the tools (Global: 23%).
Cost-of-living pressures still loom large in Ireland
Cost-of-living pressures still loom large in Ireland but have eased slightly since 2023 - 60% of Irish respondents still say that they are financially stressed compared with 63% last year (Global 2024: 52%; Global 2023: 60%). Furthermore, the proportion of workers with money left over each month after paying all of the bills has risen slightly to 39%, up from 35% in 2023 (Global 2024: 45%; Global 2023: 38%). 53% of Irish workers are likely to ask for a pay rise in the year ahead (Global: 63%).
Climate change will create new jobs
A quarter (25%) of respondents said that climate change would impact their job to a large or very large extent in the next three years (Global: 37%). The impact will be in the following key areas: 37% said that climate change will introduce health and safety risks in their workplace (Global: 44%); 31% said that new technologies or enhancements brought about by climate change will require them to learn new skills (Global: 36%); 25% said that climate change will create new job opportunities (Global: 34%).
When it comes to the financial stresses on employees, business leaders and HR should focus on ways in which corporate wellbeing programmes have a financial wellness component. Financial stress can have a highly negative impact on an employee. We know from the survey that a significant proportion of employees will be seeking a pay increase. Employers can help this by ensuring employees have access to upskilling programmes to help prepare them for promotional opportunities and to develop in demand skills.
At the same time, technology is fundamentally transforming the way work gets done and the types of skills employers are looking for. Employees are therefore placing an increased premium on organisations that invest in their skills growth so that they can stay relevant and thrive in a digital world. Businesses in turn must be proactive in their upskilling programs - prioritising the employee experience and being transparent. In particular, employers need to invest in GenAI, involve employees in developing and choosing AI tools, and encourage widespread GenAI adoption in their organisation. Meaningful engagement with your workforce will be a catalyst for successful transformation.