UK Workers, Neglected during Recession, Plan to Jump Ship

March 4, 210 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A recent survey by health care provider Simplyhealth has revealed that half of responding UK employees say their mental and physical wellbeing was ignored by their employer during the economic downturn.

A similar number (over 45%) say that they will start looking for a new job now that the market is showing signs of recovery, according to a press release.  

Although the majority (52%) of employers polled by Simplyhealth agree that they have been too focused on surviving the recession to worry about employee wellbeing, 75% do not expect their workforce to be looking for employment elsewhere. Nearly half (47%) of the UK employers surveyed said that the threat of job losses has led to stress for their staff, and a third (33%) agree that the development of a ‘work all hours’ culture has had a further impact of the health of the nation’s workforce.

“Businesses have understandably been under a considerable strain over the past months, but it is clear from our research that employee wellbeing needs to be high on the agenda for employers, especially now that we are out of a recession,” said Jamie Wilson, spokesperson for Simplyhealth, in the press release.

While surveys indicate that the number of U.S. employees unhappy with their jobs due to employers’ actions during the recession is lower (see Employer Actions in Recession Has Some Workers Wanting to Bail), nearly a third of U.S. employers report concern over retaining staff (see Employers Concerned about Retaining Workforce).

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