randstad workmonitor q2 2017: lifelong learning considered essential to increase employability and avoid unemployment.

In order to retain and increase employability, 86% of the global respondents say that they need to keep learning, according to the latest Randstad Workmonitor. In Mexico, 97% agree and overall the percentages reach between 80 and 95, but remarkably, in Sweden only 39% of the respondents think so. Ola Eriksson, Head of Marketing Randstad Sweden, responds: “These results are really staggering. Unemployment in Sweden is not that low. So, my best guess would be that people might underestimate that the world is changing and consequently different skills are needed.”

Avoid unemployment

Unemployment is apparently considered undesirable, as globally 88% of the respondents say that unemployed people must be retrained to fill empty positions due to labor scarcity and 89% would be willing to be retrained themselves to avoid unemployment. In addition, 42% of the respondents worldwide would accept a lower salary or a demotion in order to remain employed. Respondents in the UK (64%) are more willing to do so than people in Mexico and Chile (both 21%). The number of people that would accept a temporary contract to remain employed is quite high across the board: 80% globally, 92% in Brazil and 58% in Japan.

Labor migration and scarcity

When asked for their expectation that certain jobs will become hard to fill in their country, 69% of the global respondents think this will happen. Respondents from Poland have the highest expectation (85%) and people from Switzerland the lowest (59%). In order to fill vacancies that cannot be filled with domestic employees, 59% of the global respondents agree that it must be possible to attract people from abroad. In Singapore, 71% think this must be possible and in Argentina only 29% think so. To get a job that’s not available in their own country, 55% globally would be willing to move temporarily abroad. In Mexico 85% of the respondents would do so whereas people from Austria (38%) are more reluctant. Fewer people are willing to actually emigrate for a job that’s not available in their country: globally 51% and at the lowest end, Denmark with 34%. People from Mexico, however, don’t see a problem as 83% would be willing to emigrate.

Finally, the majority of the respondents – globally 73% – think that a so-called ‘job-for-life’ has become extinct. The highest score is in Portugal, where 86% think so and the lowest score is in Luxembourg with 53%.

More information on labor migration in general can be found in the Randstad-IZA research ‘people to jobs, jobs to people’: https://workforceinsights.randstad.com/hr-research-reports-iza-research-2017

Quarterly recurring observations

Mobility Index slightly down to 109

Apparently fewer employees worldwide expect to be employed elsewhere in the coming six months than they did in the previous quarter causing the Mobility Index to decrease to 109. Mobility is highest in Spain, China, and Norway (+5) and the Netherlands (+4). Mobility is the lowest in India (-6), France and the US (-5), and Austria and Hong Kong (-4). In Australia, Chile, Mexico, Poland, and Luxembourg there’s no shift in mobility.

Actual job change stable at 23%, highest in Malaysia and India

Actual job change remained stable at 23%. The actual job change increased in Brazil, Poland, Spain, and Turkey compared to last quarter. Although still the highest, the actual job change decreased in India, and also in Hong Kong, compared to last quarter.  

Appetite to change jobs again highest in India

Compared to last quarter, the job change appetite, i.e., the desire to change jobs, increased in Brazil, Czech Republic and Norway. Compared to previous quarter the job change appetite decreased in Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Poland, and the Netherlands. The appetite to change jobs is still lowest in Luxembourg which is now accompanied by Austria.

Job satisfaction still highest in India and Mexico

Compared to last quarter, job satisfaction increased in China, Sweden, and Germany. Job satisfaction decreased in Hungary, Japan, Portugal, Switzerland, and the US, and is the lowest in Japan.

Country data are available in the Global Report at https://www.randstad.com/workforce-insights/randstad-workmonitor/

The Randstad Workmonitor

The Randstad Workmonitor was launched in the Netherlands in 2003, then in Germany, and now covers 33 countries around the world. The last country to join was Portugal in 2014. The study encompasses Europe, Asia Pacific and the Americas. The Randstad Workmonitor is published 4 times a year, making both local and global trends in mobility visible over time.

The Workmonitor’s Mobility Index, which tracks employee confidence and captures the likelihood of an employee changing jobs within the next 6 months, provides a comprehensive understanding of sentiments and trends in the job market. Besides mobility, the survey addresses employee satisfaction and personal motivation as well as a rotating set of themed questions. The study is conducted online among employees aged 18-65, working a minimum of 24 hours a week in a paid job (not self-employed). The minimum sample size is 400 interviews per country. The Survey Sampling International (SSI) panel is used for sampling purposes. The second survey of 2017 was conducted from April 20 till May 8, 2017.