randstad workmonitor q3 2017: regularly refreshing skills and competencies considered essential to enhance employability.

An overwhelming 90% of global respondents indicate that they believe in regularly refreshing their skills and competencies to enhance their employability. This conviction is highest in China (98%) and lowest in the Netherlands (67%). On average, 74% of the global respondents agree that they are realizing their full potential in their current jobs. This is most evident in Greece and Malaysia (90%), while in Japan only 55% of respondents agree. When it comes to staying aligned with developments in their field, employees in India (97%) are happiest, while in Japan only 56% feel they are keeping up to speed. “These low scores in Japan may be explained by the fact that the Japanese tend to be pessimistic and discreet,” says Takashi Matsui, head of Randstad Research Institute Japan. “They often avoid saying ‘yes’ if they’re not 100% sure about something.”

Need for more training and education

In general, employees believe that keeping their skills and competencies up to date is their own responsibility (91%). In Mexico, as many as 99% of respondents believe this, while in New Zealand only 75% agree. Nevertheless, 75% of global respondents feel they need more training and/or education to stay up to date, with 71% looking for more vocational training and 49% for training of personal skills. Interestingly, job-related skills are in highest demand in Mexico (89%), while we see the greatest need for developing ‘soft’ skills in Singapore (78%), India (73%) and Malaysia (70%). France scores only 16% on the need for more training in general. This might be explained by the fact that the French employment market is rather overstrained as there are far more unemployed than jobs available. Consequently, a lot of French people have lost confidence in the usefulness of training as it doesn’t give them a job nor does it improve anything in their working situation.

Training activities

Over the past 12 months, 71% of global respondents say they have done some training activity to upskill themselves in relation to work. The lowest score (32%) is again found in Japan. “There is a deeply rooted seniority culture at Japanese companies,” explains Takashi Matsui. “Employees are basically promoted with age, and people generally believe that investing in skills will not increase income or career development. Our long-hour working culture may also play a role.” Training activities are also relatively scarce in France, where only 55% took part in a training activity over the past 12 months.

Who should pay for training?

Globally, 66% of respondents indicate that job-related training activities are offered and paid for by their employer. The percentage is highest in India (85%), while Japan again scores lowest (42%). So, to what extent are employees willing to arrange and pay for training themselves? Overall, 67% state they would be willing to do so, with the highest percentage in Mexico (96%) and the lowest in France (43%) and Japan (41%).

Quarterly recurring observations 

Mobility Index stable at 109

With a Mobility Index score of 109, the number of employees worldwide expecting to be employed elsewhere in the coming six months remained stable compared to the previous quarter. Mobility was up most in New Zealand (+7), Hungary (+6), Australia (+5), and France (+5). The biggest decreases are found in China (-7) and the US, Norway,  Sweden and Greece (all -5).

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

Actual job change remained stable at 23%. Compared to last quarter, job change increased most significantly in Hong Kong (+6%), Turkey (+5%), Mexico (+4%) and Switzerland (+4%), while it saw the biggest decrease in the US (-5%) and Malaysia, Norway, and Poland (-4%). At 47%, job change in India is even higher than in the previous quarter, with 34% changing employers and a further 13% changing positions at the same employer. At 43%, overall job change in Malaysia was slightly down; 28% of employees here changed employers, compared to 33% in the previous quarter. However, the percentage of employees changing positions at the same employer did increase in Malaysia (up from 11% to 15%). Actual job change is still lowest in Luxembourg (8%).

Appetite to change jobs still highest in India

Compared to the previous quarter, the desire to change jobs increased most in Denmark, Malaysia and Sweden, while it decreased most in Mexico, the Czech Republic, the UK and Norway. The appetite to change jobs is highest in India (40%) and lowest in Austria (17%) and Luxembourg (18%).

Job satisfaction highest in Mexico and Denmark

Compared to last quarter, job satisfaction increased most in Denmark (from 79% to 83%). Denmark is now the second-most-satisfied country behind Mexico (85%). Job satisfaction decreased in Australia, Austria, Malaysia and New Zealand, and is lowest in Japan (42%).

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 third survey of 2017 was conducted from July 18 till August 2, 2017.