Recession: Employees stick to stable jobs

With recession altering the way people view their careers, more employees are now preferring to stick to a single job, which offers security, amid a perceived dearth of job opportunities, says a global survey.

According to the biennial survey by professional services firm Towers Watson, recession has fundamentally altered the way US employees view their work and leaders today.

"As many as eight out of 10 respondents want to settle into a job, with roughly half saying they want to work for a single company their entire career and the rest wanting to work for no more than two to three companies," the survey said.

Employees also appear willing to sacrifice career advancement to maintain what job stability they have been able to hang on to through the recession. "This move toward workplace 'nesting' is no doubt influenced by a perceived dearth of job opportunities, coupled with US employees' lower appetite for the risks inherent in changing jobs," it added.

In a sign of employees' intense focus on job security, when respondents were asked about the factors most important in a preferred work situation, more chose a "secure and stable position" (86 per cent) than "substantially higher levels of compensation" (74 per cent). The survey included responses from more than 20,000 employees in 22 markets around the world to gauge their views on the changing nature of the employment deal.

Despite obstacles in career advancement and erosion of many of the benefits fundamental to the traditional and highly paternalistic deal, 81 per cent of respondents said they were not actively looking for other jobs, the survey added.

"The recession has clearly prompted many employees to rethink their priorities and focus on long-term commitment to their employer in return for some semblance of job security. Despite elimination of many programs, from bonuses to training, traditionally used as retention tools," Towers Watson Talent & Rewards business leader Laura Sejen said.

Besides, more than half (56 per cent) of the US workforce expects little change in the job market over the next year, and over a quarter (28 per cent) anticipate continued deterioration in the employment picture, it added.