Yet another workforce buzzword has entered the chat.
The “Great Detachment” is how experts are describing the growing number of employees feeling disconnected from their job. Half of employees (51%) are actively seeking a new job or eyeing job boards, according to a recent Gallup report, the highest number since 2015. And the amount of workers looking for a job in a one-month period rose to 28% in July, Axios reported, up 10% year over year.
This isn’t a “blip or fad,” said Joe Mull, keynote speaker and author of Employalty: How to Ignite Commitment and Keep Top Talent in the New Age of Work. Employees will remain disconnected and continue job searching until they’ve found a role that fits with their desired quality of life, he said.
Workplace experts shared with HR Brew what factors might be causing the Great Detachment, and how people pros can help employees feel more connected and engaged.
What’s going on in the labor market? The labor market is at an inflection point, where power rests in employers’ hands, said Rachel Sederberg, senior economist at research firm Lightcast. This can lead to disengagement, especially amid layoffs, economic uncertainty, and rescission of Covid-era flexible policies.
“Why should employers care? Well, if you don’t feel satisfied in your job, you’re not going to work as hard. You’re not going to be as good of an employee,” Sederberg told HR Brew. “You might stay, but you might not be as productive as you could be if you were satisfied with what you’re doing and you felt a better connection with your role.”
While it’s not a job seeker’s market, as hiring has slowed for several industries, Sederberg said it’s normal for employees to look for new opportunities, or at least be aware of what else is out there. Companies should still do their best to keep employees engaged, in preparation for when the labor market tightens up.
“Employers should think too, ‘Okay, how do I keep these people happy, so that when the labor market swings back in the favor of employees over employers in [the] power struggle, how do I keep them happy so that they’ll stay?’” she said.
What’s going on with employees? People in the US have become untethered from many areas of life in recent years, said John Scott, head of learning design at MasterClass at Work. Last year, the surgeon general released an advisory warning of a public health crisis related to loneliness, isolation, and disconnection—an epidemic that can affect how people work.
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Scott told HR Brew it’s important for employees to lean on work relationships amid widespread disconnection. Whether it’s fostering work friendships or seeking out colleagues for genuine conversations, he said it’s ultimately connections to people that keep employees engaged, not necessarily connections to the work itself.
He also said another point of frustration he saw with employees was the transition to in-person work from remote, and lacking a “sense of autonomy.” Scott said. Using an example from a MasterClass workshop, he said when employees feel a weakened sense of autonomy, especially when they’re micromanaged, they don’t typically perform as well.
“If you want people to be motivated and…to be engaged, micromanaging [how they work] is the worst thing you can do. What you want to do is give them a sense of autonomy, empower them…and set clear expectations,” he said. “This is where we want you to get to, but let them find the path to get there and guide them along the way.”
What’s HR to do? HR can help employees find connections and communities through employee resource groups, learning and development that involves social interactions, and career growth that promotes mobility inside or outside the organization, Scott said.
“If an employee really feels [the] company is investing in them, that they’re helping them develop those skills and grow within the company, but they also have a mind of, ‘This will help you if you go find another job’…that doesn’t necessarily lend itself to detachment. In fact, it will make [employees] feel you’re invested in [them],” he said.
Employees’ feelings of disconnection at work probably isn’t going away any time soon, Sederberg said, and it’s getting more complex with several generations in the workplace. HR pros need to recognize that there’s no “one-size-fits-all” solution, she said, and diversify the benefits and career opportunities offered to employees.
“A good employer will recognize, ‘Hey, if I want to keep my people, I need to keep up the benefits, either wages or otherwise, to keep my workers happy and engaged,” she said. “But they also may need to recognize the importance of internal pathways and internal skill building to keep people within an organization, but moving up the ladder.”
