Employee Outlook: Spring 2013 - CIPD

Spring 2013 

Employee Outlook

in partnership with 

CIPD Outlook Series 

The Employee Outlook is part of the CIPD Outlook series, which also 

includes the Labour Market Outlook and the HR Outlook. Drawing on 

a range of perspectives (and with the opportunity to compare data across 

our regular surveys), this triad of research enables the CIPD to offer unique 

insight and commentary on workplace issues in the UK. 

Others in the series 

Labour Market Outlook 

The Labour Market Outlook, published in partnership with 

SuccessFactors, provides a quarterly update on key HR, 

economic and labour market statistics. The aim of the survey 

is to produce an industry-valued benchmark of key HR 

statistics that can be used by CIPD members, as well as those 

in government, policy and wider business circles. 

cipd.co.uk/labourmarketoutlook 

HR Outlook 

The HR Outlook provides valuable insight and expert 

commentary on the HR profession. It explores the size and 

shape of HR functions, comments on the capabilities of HR 

professionals and outlines emerging trends and future priorities. 

cipd.co.uk/hroutlook

Employee Outlook 


Contents 

Key findings 2 

Job satisfaction and engagement 5 

Employee attitudes towards managers 7 

Pressure at work 10 

Work–life balance 11 

Employee attitudes and the economic downturn 12 

Job-seeking 15 

Conclusions 16 

Background to the survey 17 

cipd.co.uk/employeeoutlook 1

Key findings 

Job satisfaction and 

engagement 

The Employee Engagement Index 

highlights that the proportion of 

engaged employees has grown 

slightly to reach 37% compared 

with 35% in the previous quarter; 

however, it is still below the levels 

of autumn 2012 (38%). Fewer 

employees are disengaged (3% 

compared with 4% in the last 

quarter) and the majority remain 

neutral (60%). 

The relationship between the Engagement 

Index scores and the quality of top–down 

and bottom–up communications is evident, 

urging organisations to improve both 

communication flow channels. 

With regard to the sector 

differences, voluntary sector 

employees remain the most 

engaged, with 55% engaged 

(compared with 41% in the 

previous quarter). Engagement 

levels in the public sector have 

grown too, from 29% last quarter 

to 33% this quarter, while the 

proportion of engaged employees 

in the private sector remains the 

same (37%). 

Despite the slight increase in the 

Employee Engagement Index, 

overall net job satisfaction levels 

are actually the lowest of the last 

year (+40 compared with +47 last 

spring). However, the voluntary 

sector has seen a sharp increase 

in satisfaction (+52 from +41 

last quarter, compared with +47 

last year) and now leads on job 

satisfaction levels. 

Employee perceptions of 

their managers 

Despite a drop in the scores last 

quarter, all sectors have seen some 

degree of improvement since winter 

2012/2013. 

The voluntary sector has seen a 

particularly positive change, with 

public sector scores also improving 

on all aspects of employee 

attitudes, specifically with regard 

to employees viewing directors and 

senior managers with confidence 

and trusting them. In contrast, trust 

in leaders has been deteriorating 

in the private sector for three 

consecutive quarters. 

Line managers could become 

conduits for translating top 

management’s vision to the front 

line, as almost two-thirds of 

respondents are satisfied with the 

relationship with their supervisor. 

Communication and 

advocacy 

Overall, employee perceptions 

of being informed about what is 

happening in the organisation have 

improved among the respondents, 

with 54% feeling fairly or fully 

informed about what is happening 

in the organisation, compared 

2 cipd.co.uk/employeeoutlook



with 51% last quarter. Similarly, 

the levels of satisfaction with 

employees’ ability to communicate 

their views upwards have improved 

considerably for the first time over 

four quarters, with +17 net agreeing. 

The quality of communications 

is the best in the voluntary sector, 

with 68% saying they are fully or 

fairly well informed about what 

is happening in the organisation 

(compared with 62% last quarter), 

with some improvement also 

seen in the public (51%, up from 

48%) and private sector (53%, up 

from 50%). Similarly, 50% in the 

voluntary sector are satisfied or 

very satisfied with opportunities 

for upward feedback (an 8% 

increase from the previous quarter), 

compared with 47% of employees 

in the private sector and only 36% 

of employees in the public sector. 

of employees experiencing 

excessive pressure at work (51% 

compared with 46% last quarter). 

Work–life balance 

The proportion of employees 

reporting the right balance between 

their home and work lives has risen 

only slightly to 57%, compared 

with 56% last quarter. Only 22% 

of those experiencing excessive 

pressure at work every day were 

able to manage an effective balance 

between their work and home lives. 

Voluntary sector employees appear 

to have recovered the levels of their 

work–life balance satisfaction to 

64% after a drop to 55% in the 

last quarter. In comparison, 57% 

of employees in the private sector 

and 55% of employees in the 

public sector are happy with their 

work–life balance. 

41% 

In spring 2013 the 

proportion of employees 

reporting excessive pressure 

at work every day or once 

or twice a week has reached 

41%, increasing to match 

the levels of autumn 2012. 

V 

There is a relationship between 

the Engagement Index scores 

and the quality of top–down and 

bottom–up communications, and 

this highlights the importance of 

improving both. 

Pressure at work 

In spring 2013 the proportion 

of employees reporting excessive 

pressure at work every day or 

once or twice a week has reached 

41%, increasing to match the 

levels of autumn 2012. This is 

compared with a drop to 38% in 

the last quarter. The public sector 

continues to lead on the proportion 


V 

The proportion of 

employees reporting their 

organisation to have made 

redundancies or planning 

redundancies has decreased 

by 1% and 5% respectively 

in the public sector. 

Employee attitudes and the 

economic downturn 

Only 17% of employees think they 

are likely or very likely to lose 

their current job, compared with 

19% in the last quarter. Voluntary 

sector employees are still the most 

concerned. 

Private sector employees are most 

optimistic about finding a different 

job if they lose their current one 

(12% this quarter and in the 

previous quarter), against 9% 

across both quarters among public 

sector employees. In comparison, 

more voluntary sector workers 

now think they will struggle to find 

another job: only 6% currently 

think it would be easy or very easy, 

compared with 9% in the previous 

quarter. Older employees are more 

likely to think they would struggle 

to find another job if they lost 

their current one, while those aged 

25–34 are the most optimistic. 

Slightly fewer respondents 

have reported that they feel 

that their organisation has not 

been affected by the economic 

downturn (14% compared with 

15% in the last quarter). However, 

there is a small increase in the 

number of employees reporting 

that the organisation has made 

redundancies (34% up from 33%), 

cut back on training (22% up 

from 21%) or increased the number 

of hours people work 

(7% up from 5%). 

redundancies has decreased by 

1% and 5% respectively in the 

public sector. On the other hand, 

employees in the voluntary sector 

are increasingly more likely to 

experience redundancies, with an 

8% increase in the proportion 

of those reporting redundancies 

made, and a 15% increase in the 

percentage of those expecting 

redundancies. 

Of the three sectors, the 

organisations in the voluntary 

sector appear to have frozen 

recruitment (up 7% compared 

with winter), reduced the amount 

contributed to pensions (up 3%) or 

reduced the number of employee 

benefits/perks (up 2%). 

Job-seeking 

A slightly greater proportion of 

respondents are looking for a 

new job with a different employer 

(21% compared with 20% in the 

last quarter); this share is on the 

increase both in the private and in 

the public sector, particularly at the 

senior management level, and in 

financial intermediation (24%) and 

education (24%) sectors. 

Crucially, the stronger employees 

are motivated by the core purpose 

of their organisation, the less likely 

they are to be currently looking for 

a new job. 

In contrast to only slight 

changes in the private sector, 

the proportion of employees 

reporting their organisation to have 

made redundancies or planning 




Job satisfaction and engagement 

The Employee Outlook 

Engagement Index comprises 

a set of measures which are 

important to understanding the 

level of engagement an employee 

feels towards their organisation. 

The Index consists of 16 items, 

weighted and aggregated together 

to give an overall score (see below). 

The Engagement Index highlights 

that the proportion of engaged 

employees has grown slightly to 

reach 37% compared with 35% in 

the previous quarter; however, it 

is still below the levels of autumn 

2012 (38%). Fewer employees are 

disengaged (3% compared with 4% 

in the last quarter) and the majority 

remain neutral (60%). 

With regard to the sector 

differences, voluntary sector 

employees remain the most 

engaged, (55% engaged compared 

with 41% in the previous quarter). 

Engagement levels in the public 

sector have grown too, from 29% 

last quarter to 33% this quarter, 

while the proportion of engaged 

employees in the private sector 

remains the same (37%). 

When it comes to size, the smaller 

the organisation, the more engaged 

employees are. However, even 

though engagement is highest in 

micro businesses, it is on the decline 

for the second consecutive quarter, 

while the proportion of engaged 

employees in small, medium and 

large businesses is growing. 

Similarly to the previous quarter, 

the most engaged employees are 

the ones who have been in the 

organisation for the least amount 

of time: 56% of those who have 

been with the organisation for up 

to six months and 55% of those 

who stayed between six months 

and a year are engaged. 

Employee Engagement Index 

Factor 

Going the extra mile 

Alignment to organisation purpose 


Relationships with colleagues 

Satisfaction with role 

Attitude to senior managers 

Satisfaction with line manager/ 

advocacy 

Items included in the factor 

I will often take on more work to help relieve my colleagues’ workloads. 

I will often work for more hours than those I am paid or contracted to do. 

I know very clearly what the core purpose of my organisation is. 

I am highly motivated by my organisation’s core purpose. 

I achieve the right balance between my home and work lives. 

Approximately how much of the time do you feel under EXCESSIVE pressure in your 

job 

I have positive relationships with my colleagues. 

My job is as challenging as I would like it to be. 

My organisation gives me the opportunities to learn and grow. 

I am satisfied with the content of my job role. 

Overall, how satisfied or dissatisfied would you say you are with your current job 

I have confidence in the directors/senior management team of my organisation. 

I trust the directors/senior management team of my organisation. 

Overall how satisfied, or dissatisfied, are you with the relationship you have with your 

immediate supervisor, line manager or boss 

How likely or unlikely would you be to recommend your organisation as an 

employer 

I don’t think my employer treats me fairly. 


V 

Despite the slight increase in 

the Employee Engagement 

Index, job satisfaction levels 

are actually the lowest of 

the last year. 

Job satisfaction 

Despite the slight increase in the 

Employee Engagement Index, 

job satisfaction levels are actually 

the lowest of the last year (+40 

compared with +44 last quarter, and 

+47 in spring 2012). 

However, while overall job 

satisfaction has dropped, the 

voluntary sector has seen a sharp 

increase in satisfaction (+52 from 

+41 last quarter); this is against a 

smaller rise from +39 in autumn 

2012. The voluntary sector now 

leads on job satisfaction ratings, 

while the private sector has fallen to 

+45 (from +48 last quarter) and the 

public sector to +25 (from +33). 

Table 1: The extent to which employees are engaged at work, by gender, sector 

and size of organisation (%) 

Engaged Neutral Disengaged 

All 37 60 3 

Men 37 59 4 

Women 38 60 2 

Voluntary sector 55 45 0 

Private sector 37 60 3 

Public sector 33 63 4 

Micro businesses 56 44 0 

Small businesses 45 51 4 

Medium businesses 40 57 3 

Large businesses 34 61 4 

Table 2: The extent to which employees are engaged at work, by quarter (%) 

Spring 

2013 

Winter 

2012–13 


2012 

Engaged 37 35 38 

Neutral 60 61 59 

Disengaged 3 4 3 

Table 3: Employee net satisfaction, by sector and size of organisation (%) 



Winter 

2012–13 


2012 

Overall +40 +44 +47 

Voluntary sector +52 +41 +47 

Private sector +45 +48 +47 

Public sector +25 +33 +45 

Micro businesses +53 +67 +65 

Small businesses +38 +45 +51 

Medium businesses +39 +36 +42 

Large businesses +30 +37 +38 




Employee attitudes towards managers 

Attitudes to senior managers 

Despite a drop in the scores last 

quarter, all sectors have seen some 

degree of improvement in attitudes 

to senior managers in spring 2013. 

The voluntary sector has seen a 

particularly positive change, with 

employees consistently agreeing 

that their directors and senior 

managers treat them with respect 

(+31 net agreement) and have trust 

(+19) and confidence (+23) in these 

leaders. The public sector scores 

have improved on all aspects of 

employee attitudes, particularly 

with regard to leaders’ clarity of 

vision (+1 from –7 last quarter) 

and employee trust (–25 from –32 

last quarter) and confidence (–22 

from –29) in them. Although these 

are still mainly negative scores, 

this is a positive development to 

employees’ perceptions of senior 

management, which has only 

slightly been matched by leaders’ 

behaviours, specifically consulting 

employees on decisions (–34 from 

–42 last quarter) and treating 

them with respect (–7 from –20). 

In contrast, while these two areas 

have seen an improvement, private 

sector employees’ trust (+14 from 

+16 last quarter) and confidence 

(+32 from +36 last quarter) in 

leaders have been deteriorating in 

the sector for three consecutive 

quarters. 

Attitudes to line managers 

Line managers could become 

conduits for translating top 

management’s vision to the front 

line, as almost two-thirds of 

respondents are satisfied with the 

relationship with their supervisor: 

64% of employees in the private 

sector, 61% in the public sector and 

74% in the voluntary sector agreed 

or strongly agreed that they are 

satisfied with that relationship. 

68% 

V 

The quality of 

communications is the best in 

the voluntary sector, with 68% 

saying they are fully or fairly 

well informed about what is 

happening in the organisation. 

Table 4: Net agree scores, by sector (%) 

They consult employees 

about important decisions 

They treat employees with 

respect 



Private sector Public sector Voluntary sector 

Winter 

2012–13 



Winter 

2012–13 



Winter 

2012–13 

–20 –23 –34 –42 +3 –18 

+19 +20 –7 –20 +31 +7 

I trust them +12 +14 –25 –32 +19 –2 

I have confidence in them +14 +16 –22 –29 +23 –1 

They have a clear vision 

of where the organisation 

is going 

+32 +36 +1 –7 +40 +13 


Communication and 

advocacy 

Top–down and bottom–up 

communications are crucial for 

tackling the disconnect between 

the top management and the front 

line. Overall, employee perceptions 

of being informed have improved 

among the respondents, with 54% 

feeling fairly or fully informed, 

compared with 51% last quarter. 

Similarly, the levels of satisfaction 

with employees’ ability to 

communicate their views upwards 

have improved considerably for the 

first time over four quarters, with 

+17 net agreeing. 

The quality of communications is the 

best in the voluntary sector, with 68% 

saying they are fully or fairly well 

informed about what is happening in 

the organisation (compared with 62% 

last quarter), with some improvement 

also seen in the public (51%) and 

private sector (53%). Similarly, 50% 

in the voluntary sector are satisfied 

or very satisfied with opportunities 

for upward feedback (an 8% increase 

from the previous quarter), compared 

with 47% of employees in the private 

sector and only 36% of employees in 

the public sector. 

There is a relationship between the 

Engagement Index scores and the 

quality of top–down and bottom–up 

communications and highlights the 

need for organisations to further 

improve both communication flow 

channels. 

The improvement in the quality of 

communications has been mirrored 

by the increase in the number of 


likely or very likely to recommend 

their organisation as an employer 

(59% compared with 51% last 

quarter). This is compared with 49% 

in the public sector (4% increase on 

the previous quarter levels) and 51% 

in the private sector (no net change 

from the previous quarter). 

Table 5: Proportion of employees likely to recommend their organisation as an employer to others (%) 

All 

Private 

sector 

Public 

sector 

Confidence in leaders 

Trust in leaders 

Voluntary 

sector Agree Disagree Agree Disagree 

Very likely 19 (+2) 20 (+2) 14 (0) 24 (+1) 39 5 40 6 

Likely 32 (0) 31 (–2) 35 (+4) 35 (+7) 47 27 47 30 

Neither likely nor unlikely 23 (–3) 24 (–2) 20 (–6) 24 (+2) 10 39 10 36 

Unlikely 14 (+1) 13 (+1) 18 (+1) 11 (–7) 3 21 3 19 

Very unlikely 10 (0) 10 (–1) 12 (+1) 7 (–2) 1 9 1 9 




Table 6: Proportion of employees feeling informed about what is happening within their organisation, by sector (%) 

All 



Private sector Public sector Voluntary sector 

Winter 

2012–13 



Winter 

2012–13 



Winter 

2012–13 

I feel fully informed 13 14 11 10 8 15 12 

I feel fairly well informed 41 39 39 41 40 53 50 

I receive only a limited 

amount of information 

I get to hear very little 

about what goes on 

33 33 35 37 35 28 30 

12 13 14 12 16 4 8 

Table 7: Proportion of employees satisfied with the opportunities that exist to feed their views/issues/ideas upwards, 

net agree scores (%) 

All 

Net engagement 

Net trust in 

directors/senior 

management 

Very satisfied 12 +92 +84 +85 

Satisfied 32 +59 +40 +45 

Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied 30 +20 –16 –9 

Dissatisfied 22 –1 –62 –65 

Very dissatisfied 5 –27 –80 –85 

Net confidence in 

directors/senior 

management 


Pressure at work 

In spring 2013 the proportion 

of employees reporting excessive 

pressure at work every day or once 

or twice a week has reached 41%, 

increasing to match the levels of 

autumn 2012. This is compared 

with a drop to 38% in the last 

quarter. 

Over half of all public sector 

employees (51%) feel excessive 

pressure at work either every 

day or once or twice a week, 

(compared with 46% last quarter). 

In comparison, the proportion of 

private sector employees reporting 

excessive pressure in their jobs has 

increased only slightly, from 35% 

last quarter to 38% and the same 

proportion of staff in the voluntary 

sector this quarter (41%) report 

excessive pressure at work every day 

or once or twice a week. 

There is a statistically significant 

difference in the exposure to 

excessive pressure at work and 

the perceptions of directors/senior 

management as having a clear vision 

of where the organisation is going. 

Employees who agreed or strongly 

agreed that their senior team has 

such clarity of vision were less likely 

to experience excessive pressure at 

work every day or once or twice a 

week (38%) compared with those 

respondents disagreeing or strongly 

disagreeing with the presence of 

clear vision among directors/senior 

managers (54%). 

Table 8: Proportion of employees saying they are under excessive pressure at work… (%) 

All Men Women Private Public Voluntary 

Every day 13 14 13 12 19 9 

Once or twice a week 28 29 27 26 32 32 

Once or twice a month 26 28 25 27 24 29 

Less frequently than once a month 24 22 26 25 21 21 

Never 9 8 9 9 6 9 

Table 9: The link between frequency of exposure to excessive pressure at work and perceptions of directors/senior managers 

as having a clear vision (%) 

Agree that directors/senior 

managers have a clear vision of 

where the organisation is going 

Neutral 

Disagree that directors/senior 

managers have a clear vision of 

where the organisation is going 

Every day 11 12 21 

Once or twice a week 27 30 33 

Once or twice a month 27 28 25 

Less frequently than once a month 27 23 17 

Never 8 8 4 





The proportion of employees 

reporting the right balance between 

their home and work lives has risen 

only slightly to 57%, compared 

with 56% last quarter. This was 

more noticeable for men (a rise from 

50% to 53%), with 61% of women 

agreeing or strongly agreeing 

in both quarters. No change in 

work–life balance was reported 

by employees in the private sector 

(57% agreeing or strongly agreeing), 

while the proportion of public 

sector employees reporting the right 

work–life balance has fallen to 55% 

from 57% in the last quarter. 

Voluntary sector employees appear 

to have recovered the levels of their 

work–life balance satisfaction to 

64% after a drop to 55% in the 

last quarter; the levels of work–life 

balance satisfaction exceed autumn 

2012 levels of 61% which could 

potentially be linked to the higher 

demand for community services over 

the winter period. 

Unsurprisingly, there is a link 

between the levels of satisfaction 

with work–life balance and 

exposure to excessive pressure 

at work. Only 22% of those 

experiencing excessive pressure 

at work every day were able to 

manage the right balance between 

their work and home lives. 

Satisfaction with work–life balance 

increased as the levels of excessive 

pressure reduced. 

Table 10: Proportion of employees agreeing they achieve the right balance between their work and home lives… (%) 

All Men Women Private Public Voluntary 

Strongly agree 10 8 13 11 9 4 

Agree 47 45 48 46 46 57 

Neither agree nor disagree 15 17 14 15 15 17 

Disagree 19 22 17 20 19 13 

Strongly disagree 8 9 8 8 11 9 

Not sure 1 0 1 1 1 1 

Not applicable 0 0 0 0 0 0 


Employee attitudes and the economic 

downturn 

V 

20% 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, 

older employees are 

more likely to think they 

would struggle to find 

another job if they lost 

their current one. Those 

aged 25–34 are the most 

optimistic, with 20% 

thinking it would be 

easy or very easy to find 

another job. 

Only 17% of employees think they 

are likely or very likely to lose 

their current job, compared with 

19% in the last quarter. Voluntary 

sector employees are still the most 

concerned; although the proportion 

of those saying it is likely they 

could lose their job has dropped 

from 26% to 19%. A similar drop 

has occurred in the public sector 

– from 24% to 18%, while the 

proportion of concerned employees 

in the private sector has dropped by 

only 1% to 16% this quarter. 

As in the last quarter, the same 

proportion of employees (11%) 

think it would be easy or very 

easy to find a job if they lost their 

current one and fewer think it 

would be difficult or very difficult 

(63% compared with 66% in 

winter). As before, private sector 

employees are most optimistic 

(12% this quarter and in the 

previous quarter), against 9% 

across both quarters in the public 

sector. In comparison, more 

voluntary sector workers now 

think they will struggle to find 

another job: only 6% currently 

think it would be easy or very easy, 


quarter. 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, older 

employees are more likely to think 

they would struggle to find another 

job if they lost their current one. 

Those aged 25–34 are the most 

optimistic, with 20% thinking it 

would be easy or very easy to find 

another job. This is compared with 

15% of those aged 18–24 and as 

few as 8% and 7% respectively in 

the age groups 45–54 and over 55 

years old. 

Slightly fewer respondents have 

reported that they feel that their 

organisation has not been affected 

by the economic downturn 

(14% compared with 15% 

in the last quarter). However, 

there is a slight increase in the 

number of employees reporting 

that the organisation has made 

redundancies (34% up from 33%), 

cut back on training (22% up from 

21%) or increased the number of 

hours people work (7% up from 

5%). On the other hand, 1% 

fewer respondents indicate the 

following forms of the organisation 

being affected by the economic 

downturn: employer planning to 

make redundancies; freezing pay; 

freezing recruitment; or reducing 

the amount of contribution to 

employee pensions. 

Similarly slight changes characterise 

employment in the private sector, 

where more organisations now 

appear to have made redundancies 

(28% compared with 27%) or 

increased the number of hours 

people work (6% compared 

with 5%). Fewer organisations 

in the private sector have frozen 

pay (32% compared with 34%). 

While no change in the number 




of organisations cutting pay was 

observed overall (at 7%), there is 

a slight increase in the number of 

private sector employees reporting 

this trend (6% compared with 5% 

last quarter). 

More dramatic changes are 

observed in the public and 

voluntary sectors. On the one 

hand, in the public sector the 

proportion of employees reporting 

their organisation to have 

made redundancies or planning 

redundancies decreased by 1% 

and 5% respectively. On the other 

hand, employees in the voluntary 

sector are increasingly more likely 

to experience redundancies, with 

an 8% increase in the proportion 

of those reporting redundancies 

made and a 15% increase in the 

percentage of those expecting 

redundancies. This is after a 

seasonal drop in redundancies 

in the voluntary sector observed 

in the last quarter. In both the 

public and voluntary sectors, 

organisations were likely to cut 

back on the number of hours that 

people worked (13% down from 

21% in winter in the public sector, 

and 10% down from 13% in the 

voluntary sector). 

In addition, considerable changes 

were observed in the public and 

voluntary sectors with regard to 

recruitment and benefits. Of the 

three sectors, the organisations 

in the voluntary sector appear 

to have frozen recruitment 

(up 7% compared with winter 

2012–13), reduced the amount 

contributed to pensions (up 3%) or 

reduced the number of employee 

benefits/perks (up 2%). Fewer 

organisations in the private and 

public sector have implemented 

these measures in response to the 

economic downturn. Despite this, 

the voluntary sector is where the 

largest increase is in the number 

of employees who think that their 

organisation has not been affected 

by the economic downturn, 

reaching 10% currently compared 

with 8% in winter 2012–13. 

14% 

Slightly fewer respondents 

have reported that they 

feel that their organisation 

has been affected by the 

economic downturn (14% 

compared with 15% in 

the last quarter). 

V 

Table 11: In which ways, if at all, has your organisation been affected by the economic downturn (%) 

All Private Public Voluntary 

It has made redundancies. 34% (+1) 28% (+1) 51% (–1) 49% (+8) 

It is planning to make redundancies. 13% (–1) 8% (0) 28% (–5) 25% (+15) 

It has cut back on training. 22% (+1) 14% (0) 45% (+5) 28% (–2) 

It has cut back on the number of hours that people work. 18% (–2) 21% (+1) 13% (–8) 10% (–3) 

It has increased the number of hours that people work. 7% (+2) 6% (+1) 9% (+3) 12% (+1) 

It has frozen pay. 41% (–1) 32% (–2) 71% (0) 40% (+1) 

It has cut pay. 7% (0) 6% (+1) 11% (–1) 7% (+1) 

It has frozen recruitment. 28% (–1) 24% (0) 43% (–7) 20% (+7) 

It has reduced the amount contributed to employee pensions. 6% (–1) 5% (0) 9% (–3) 16% (+3) 

It has reduced employee benefits/perks. 17% (–2) 15% (–3) 23% (–2) 21% (+2) 

It has been affected in some other way. 19% (–1) 17% (–1) 24% (0) 28% (–3) 

It has not been affected by the economic downturn. 14% (–1) 18% (–1) 4% (+1) 10% (+2) 

Don’t know 7% (+1) 7% (0) 4% (–1) 3% (+1) 

Figures in brackets indicate the % change from the previous quarter (winter 2012/13) 


Table 12: Proportion of employees saying it would be easy or difficult to find another job if they were to lose their current job… (%) 

All 18–24 25–34 35–44 45–54 55+ 

Very easy 2 2 3 3 1 2 

Easy 9 13 17 12 7 5 

Neither easy nor difficult 21 30 28 24 24 12 

Difficult 32 33 34 39 32 28 

Very difficult 31 12 14 17 30 49 

Don’t know 5 10 3 6 5 3 

Table 13: Proportion of employees saying it is likely or unlikely that they could 

lose their jobs as a result of the economic downturn… (%) 

All Private Public Voluntary 

Very likely 4 4 4 3 

Likely 13 12 14 16 

Neither likely nor unlikely 28 28 27 36 

Unlikely 30 29 35 26 

Very unlikely 20 21 17 17 

Don’t know 5 5 3 2 




Job-seeking 

A slightly greater proportion of 

respondents are looking for a 

new job with a different employer 

(21% compared with 20% in the 

last quarter); this share is on the 

increase both in the private and the 

public sector. 

The proportion of individuals 

seeking a new job is greater at 

senior manager level (at 29% 


quarter) once again this quarter. 

Those in financial intermediation 

(24%) and education (24%) have 

the highest number of employees 

currently looking for a job with a 

different organisation. 

There is a relationship between 

employees looking for a different 

job and their level of motivation 

by the organisation’s core 

purpose. Those motivated by 

the core purpose more strongly 

are significantly less likely to be 

looking for a new job compared 

with those who disagree that they 

are motivated by the core purpose. 

Similar links are observed between 

turnover intentions and satisfaction 

with job content, development 

opportunities on the job and the 

Engagement Index. 

Looking at organisational responses 

to the economic downturn, linear 

regression analysis (a method used 

to test relationships between two 

or more variables) confirms that 

employees increasingly look for a 

different job if their organisation 

increases the number of hours 

that people work or cuts pay. For 

example, 35% of employees in the 

organisations that have cut pay are 

looking for different jobs, compared 

with 22% of employees in the 

organisations that did not. Freezing 

pay does not have the same effect 

on turnover intentions. 

Table 14: Proportion looking for a new job, by sector (%) 

Crucially there is a 

relationship between 

employees looking for 

a different job and their 

level of motivation by the 

organisation’s core purpose. 



Winter 

2012–13 


2012 

All 21 20 20 




Table 15: Proportion looking for a new job, by engagement levels (%) 

Engaged Neutral Disengaged 

All looking for a new job 7 28 59 




V 

Disengaged employees in the 

private sector are more likely to 

look for a different job, compared 

with the public sector. On the 

other hand, three-quarters of those 

neutral to their organisation in the 

voluntary sector are still looking 

for a different job. 


Conclusions 

The spring 2013 Employee Outlook 

findings show some signs of 

improvements this quarter. There 

has been a slight improvement in 

employee engagement (although a 

decrease in specific job satisfaction). 

Perceptions of leaders across 

all three sectors have generally 

improved – although trust and 

confidence in leaders have increased 

in the voluntary and public sectors 

but decreased in the private sector. 

While the pressure respondents 

experience on a day-to-day basis 

has increased slightly, people’s 

ability to balance their work 

and personal lives has also 

increased. There has also been an 

improvement in communication 

and information flows, with more 

employees across sectors reporting 

that they feel fully or fairly well 

informed about organisational 

issues and a marked increase in 

satisfaction with the ability to 

communicate views upwards. 

However, it is the voluntary sector 

that really stands out this quarter, 

with positive scores for engagement, 

perceptions of senior managers, open 

communications and understanding 

of, and motivation by, core purpose, 

despite experiencing ongoing 

redundancies, pay and benefit cuts. 

The voluntary sector has seen an 

impressive rise in Engagement Index 

scores, with 55% now engaged 

(compared with 41% last quarter). 

This increase is underpinned by 

improvements across multiple 

aspects of organisational life for 

these employees, including better 

levels of job satisfaction, employees’ 

ability to achieve the right work– 

life balance and a healthy level of 

challenge in the job. 

The growth in Engagement Index 

scores, despite the observed increase 

in the number of redundancies 

in the voluntary sector, seems to 

be underpinned by the quality of 

It is highly likely that the economic 

downturn will continue to shape 

organisational change at least for another 

year; organisations therefore need to 

draw on leadership capacity to maintain 

employee engagement and job satisfaction 

in the context of low job security. 

management. More employees in 

the voluntary sector say that senior 

managers treat them with respect 

and consult them on important 

organisational decisions, which 

is matched by growing levels of 

trust and confidence in the top 

team. Smaller improvements in 

management quality in the public 

sector also suggest the possibility of 

improvement in employees’ overall 

engagement in the coming months. 

It is highly likely that the economic 

downturn will continue to shape 

organisational change at least for 

another year; organisations therefore 

need to draw on management and 

leadership capacity to maintain 

employee engagement and job 

satisfaction in the context of low 

job security. The data from the 

voluntary sector gives us some hints 

on how that could be achieved and 

provides some good practice that 

both the private and public sectors 

can learn from. For example, more 


agree that they know clearly what 

the purpose of the organisation 

is and are motivated by this core 

purpose. In addition, the effect of 

improved quality of both top–down 

and bottom–up communications 

is evident, with more workers in 

the sector feeling informed about 

what is happening within their 

organisation, but equally satisfied 

with opportunities to feed their 

opinions upwards. 




Background to the survey 

The CIPD has commissioned 

a quarterly survey among UK 

employees (including sole traders) 

to identify their opinions of and 

attitudes towards working life today, 

particularly during these difficult 

economic times. 

YouGov conducted the latest 

quarterly online survey for the CIPD 

of 2,083 UK employees in March 

2013. 

This survey was administered 

to members of the YouGov Plc 

UK panel of more than 350,000 

individuals who have agreed to 

take part in surveys. The sample 

was selected and weighted to be 

representative of the UK workforce 

in relation to sector and size 

(private, public, voluntary), industry 

type and full-time/part-time working 

by gender. Size of organisation was 

classified in the following way: 

sole trader (one-person business), 

micro business (2–9), small business 

(10–49), medium (50–249) and 

large (more than 250). 

Emails were sent to panellists 

selected at random from the base 

sample. The email invited them to 

take part in a survey and provided 

a generic survey link. Once a panel 

member clicked on the link they 

were sent to the survey that they are 

most required for, according to the 

sample definition and quotas. The 

sample profile is normally derived 

from census data or, if not available 

from the census, from industryaccepted 

data. 

Net scores refer to the proportion 

of people agreeing with a statement 

minus those disagreeing. 


Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development 

151 The Broadway London SW19 1JQ UK 

Tel: +44 (0)20 8612 6200 Fax: +44 (0)20 8612 6201 

Email: cipd@cipd.co.uk Website: cipd.co.uk 

Incorporated by Royal Charter Registered charity no.1079797 

Issued: April 2013 Reference: 6205 © Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development 2013

Employee Outlook: Spring 2013 - CIPD

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