Uncovering Industries With an Elevated Risk of Employee Attrition

The COVID-19 pandemic has left its mark on organizations and employees around the world, and as we look to the future, it’s essential to consider how the past 18 months have impacted employee engagement. In order to reestablish a solid foundation for ongoing success, business leaders need to develop a plan of action for leveling up the employee experience.

As part of that plan, it’s important to acknowledge the elevated risk of attrition across a number of sectors, with some facing more significant challenges than others. It’s only with an accurate picture of employee sentiment in real time that it’s possible to take the targeted actions necessary to retain top talent and embrace a truly agile approach to your people.

Our latest report, “The Great Regeneration: An Analysis of Employee Turnover Intentions by Industry and Region,” uncovers which sectors have the largest number of employees with an elevated risk of attrition. This analysis is based on a sample of over 1 million employees across 250 organizations worldwide.

Sectors With Highest Levels of Attrition Risk

Globally, one in four employees display signs of an elevated risk of attrition, which is defined as someone with a probability of leaving above 50%. This level of risk ranges from above average to very high, depending on a range of factors, including engagement, tenure, and survey responsiveness.

Of all the sectors benchmarked within Workday Peakon Employee Voice, the technology industry has the largest proportion of employees with an elevated turnover risk, at 43%. This is largely driven by growing employee sentiment for more flexible working practices.

A number of front-line sectors also display high levels of employee attrition risk, including higher education, healthcare, retail, and consumer goods. Many organizations within these sectors are tackling high levels of burnout as a result of the pandemic, while also trying to find ways of retaining staff in the midst of The Great Resignation.

Reinventing the Employee Experience for All

Unlike many front-line sectors, a number of industries face high levels of attrition risk due to shifting employee expectations about the future of work. Among these are professional services, life sciences, and financial services. 

With many employees realizing that working remotely and other flexible practices are possible but not necessarily a priority, they’ve started to question how the employee experience could be improved and are much more willing to voice these ideas openly.

For some sectors, including energy and utilities and manufacturing, these employee expectations center on growth and development. As many organizations within these sectors transition to more sustainable technologies and embrace the role of automation, it’s important to prioritize ongoing skills development and career planning as part of the employee experience.

How the Employee Voice Can Help

For many organizations, the employee voice formed an essential part of their strategic planning during the pandemic, allowing them to be more proactive and agile in their decision making. Many invested in quantifying the employee experience, providing a rich source of insights about what actions were needed and an accurate measure of the impact they were having.

The challenges organizations face now differ depending on their respective sector, but those with relevant insights about what their people need will be able to re-create the employee experience in a way that significantly increases ongoing engagement and loyalty.

Want to learn more about how the pandemic has impacted the risk of employee attrition in different industries and regions? Download our new report, “The Great Regeneration: An Analysis of Employee Turnover Intentions by Industry and Region.”