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MUMBAI: Nearly 93% of employees in India and 86% of employees globally feel people at their organization are not heard fairly or equally – and more than a third (35%) of Indian employees and nearly half (47%) of employees globally believe that underrepresented voices remain undervalued by employers, reveals a study by The Workforce Institute at the Ultimate Kronos Group (UKG), a workforce and human capital management solution provider.
"As organizations increasingly struggle to retain their current workforce as well as hire fast enough to keep up with consumer demand, global research across 11 countries exposes a troublesome gap between employee voice and employer action that — if left unresolved — can disengage workers, fuel turnover, and hinder business performance," said The Heard and the Heard-Nots report by The Workforce Institute at UKG and Workplace Intelligence.
Indian employees feel most passionately than the global average when it comes to feeling that employees in corporate offices are heard more (29%) compared to the global average of 17%– and 22% feel those who complain tend to be heard more compared to the global average of 16%. When it comes to performance, just over a third (34%) of Indian employees feel reliable workers and high performers are heard more, compared to the global average of 24%.
“There is troubling inequity in the feedback loop at organizations across the globe. Despite many employees feeling personally heard by their employer, the majority see significant disparities...,” said Chris Mullen, Ph.D., SPHR, SHRM-SCP, executive director of The Workforce Institute at UKG, adding that at a time when organizations are desperately vying to attract and retain top talent, people leaders must first listen and then act upon the voice of the employee in order to sustain long-term business stability and success.
Among all workers globally, two in three (63%) feel their voice has been ignored in some way by their manager or employer – that number jumps drastically to 86% in India – and specifically, the vast majority (93%) of younger workers in India feel their voice has been ignored – the highest of any country surveyed.
Globally, a third (34%) of employees would rather quit or switch teams than voice their true concerns with management – this number jumps to more than half (55%) of Indian employees feeling this way.
“We can’t expect people to develop a sense of belonging and trust at work if they don’t feel heard or trusted by their managers, peers, or leaders,” said Sumeet Doshi, country manager, India at UKG. “Especially during uncertain times, organizations must listen to their employees, understand their concerns, and communicate frequently. In this day and age when we are moving to hyper-personalization of experiences, organizations should leverage technology to understand the individual's voice in order to build a happy, productive, and engaged workforce,” he added.
In India, employees with very high senses of belonging and engagement (both 88%) are more likely to feel heard than those with very low belonging (80%) or engagement (67%). This has a remarkable impact on the bottom line: Organizations are much more likely to perform well financially (88%) when their employees feel heard, engaged, and a sense of belonging.
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