More Employees Consider Changing Jobs as Economic Optimism Grows

NEW YORK, Sept. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- GfK Custom Research North America, a leading global custom research company, today revealed the findings of its national survey indicating that more than one in five currently employed Americans are willing to change jobs if given the opportunity, which could negatively impact employee retention. However, 53 percent would prefer to stay with their current company even if they were offered a good job elsewhere.  

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During recessions, employees are far less likely to change jobs, while employers tend to lessen their investments in employee training and development in an effort to keep overhead lower.

The GfK Employee Engagement Pulse Survey was conducted using a recent GfK Roper OmniWeb(SM). The survey of 533 employed adults was weighted to ensure accurate and reliable representation of the total online population, 18 years and older, and screened for employment status.

"This number is important to watch as the economy continues to improve," said Thomas Hartley, Vice President of GfK Customer Loyalty and Employee Engagement. "Employees are more likely to stay with their company during lean times, and so companies have taken them for granted.  When the economy strengthens, experience tells us that employees will begin weighing their options and considering other jobs. Since it takes up to 12 months to improve employee engagement, companies need to plan ahead and take the proper steps to ensure their employee retention rates remain high."

Two other findings suggest an increased optimism among working Americans: 47 percent of employed adults are confident that the economy will recover in the next year, and 80 percent of fully employed adults are confident that they will be able to stay in their job for at least the next year.  

For more information, contact Thomas Hartley at 212.993.5370.  

About GfK Employee Engagement

GfK Employee Engagement, a service of GfK Customer Loyalty, helps clients understand how employee engagement contributes to revenue and profit growth, with validated engagement metrics, focused action that increases retention and discretionary effort and specifically tailored components that build customer loyalty.  GfK Customer Loyalty, a division of GfK Custom Research North America, provides proven, results-oriented methods for measuring employee engagement as well as managing customer satisfaction and loyalty.

About GfK Custom Research North America

Headquartered in New York, GfK Custom Research North America is part of the GfK Group. The GfK Group offers the fundamental knowledge that industry, retailers, services companies and the media need to make market decisions. It delivers a comprehensive range of information and consultancy services in three business sectors -- Custom Research, Retail and Technology and Media. The world's fourth largest market research organization operates in more than 100 countries and employs over 10,000 staff. In 2009, the GfK Group's sales amounted to EUR 1.16 billion. For more information visit www.gfkamerica.com. Follow us at www.gfkinsights4u.com or on Twitter @gfkamerica.

SOURCE GfK Custom Research North America