Less than a quarter (24%) of respondents felt motivated at work in 2015, according to research by Red Letter Days for Business.
Its report, Employee motivation: Who came out on top in 2015?’, which is based on 2,006 responses from employees, also found that 34% of staff could not name a single occasion where they felt motivated at work last year.
The research also found:
- Almost (46%) of respondents have neutral or negative feelings towards their job.
- Just 21% of respondents aged between 18 and 24 felt motivated at work last year, compared to 17% of respondents aged 45-55 and 39% of 25 to 34-year-olds.
- 82% of those who felt motivated in 2015 received some form of reward or recognition.
- Around half (46%) of respondents who could choose whether they worked at home or in the office were highly engaged.
- 45% of respondents cited a good work-life balance as a key motivator for them in 2015, and 16% of respondents found their workplace environment to be highly motivating.
- 17% said that their boss is very good at saying thank you and keeping them motivated.
Bill Alexander (pictured), chief executive officer of Red Letter Days for Business, said: “It’s worrying that only a small percentage of each age group could say ‘yes’ they feel motivated at work. What’s more worrying is how little 18-24 year olds are driven; this is our workforce of the future therefore employers need to do more to nurture this talent.
“It’s concerning that such a large percentage of our workforces had difficulty naming a specific time when they felt driven. However, we must note that out of the employees who could remember an occasion the top responses fell into one of four categories: achieved, challenged, gained knowledge and recognised.
“Employers who strive towards giving their staff the opportunities to experience these four elements throughout 2016 will no doubt benefit from an engaged and driven workforce.”