Cost-of-living crisis hits employees hard, surveys reveal
Job insecurity and rising living costs are fuelling employee burnout, with one in four anticipating redundancy in the next quarter.
Cost of living pressures are having a negative impact on the mental health and productivity of workers, according to two recent employee surveys.
The latest quarterly ELMO Employee Sentiment Index found that more than half of workers felt that financial stress was impacting their physical health, while 44 per cent felt it was impacting their productivity.
The research also found that 65 per cent of workers believe the increase in the cost of living has had a negative impact on their mental health, with women significantly more likely to report a negative impact at 72 per cent compared to men at 59 per cent.
ABS data released last week indicated that employee households experienced a 2 per cent rise in living costs in the March quarter.
Mortgage interest charges were the main contributor for employee households with interest charges increasing 78.9 per cent in the 12 months to the end of the March quarter.
The ELMO survey revealed that job security is also a big concern for workers with 27 per cent of workers anticipating there will be redundancies at their company in the next three months and 26 per cent worried their role will be the one to be axed.
Fear of redundancy is leading to a significant number of employees taking on extra responsibilities or putting in extra hours in a bid to safeguard their jobs.
“Over 54 per cent of Australian employees have taken on extra responsibilities that are not part of their job description in the last three months, with 37 per cent feeling they need to work harder or longer hours to keep their jobs safe,” the quarterly report stated.
“Women in particular are putting in extra hours, with 34 per cent working early or late compared to 24 per cent of men, and 31 per cent increasingly working through their lunch break compared to 20 per cent of men.”
As a last resort, 17 per cent of Australian workers have saved their annual leave in the last three months in case of a redundancy, rising to 21 per cent of salaried full time workers.
“It is clear that increasing financial and job insecurity is exacting a significant toll on the wellbeing of Australian employees, particularly women and younger workers,” said ELMO Software chief executive and co-founder Danny Lessem.
“These findings should serve as a wake up call that to avert a burnout crisis, companies need to take proactive steps to support their employees, whether that is through financial education, mental health support or flexible working arrangements.”
The Workforce Trends Report has also identified a deterioration in the wellbeing of employees.
The 2023 Index revealed that only 48 per cent of all employees reported high wellbeing.
The survey, conducted by insurance and consulting firm Gallagher, also found that almost half of employees (46 per cent) continued to work when they felt they needed time off – significantly more than the previous 12 months where 31 per cent of employees reported this.
“Such findings reveal an increasing risk for organisations is being unaddressed, both in relation to increasing leave, loss of productivity and the likelihood of work-related injury claims, particularly with poor mental health conditions at work increasing as a proportion of serious claims,” the report said.
Cost of living rises and continuing economic uncertainty is also driving a sharp decline in satisfaction with personal finances with only 45 per cent of employees indicating they are happy with their personal situation, the survey stated.
“When asked to describe the one key thing their organisation can do to support welding, financial support was the second most requested action, behind work life balance. This has moved up from third most important in 2022 to second most in 2023,” the report stated.
Employees are requesting a better salary, with some describing it as the need to be paid “a liveable wage” and paying relative to the market.
“Employees have described conditions as very tough financially and have asked employers to increase their salary to keep up with inflation and to account for price of living increases,” the report stated.
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