Traditionally overworked and underpaid, the UK’s frontline workers are taking back control when it comes to employment, using a volatile market to their advantage and finding jobs that work for them – according to a new global report.
Toma adds: “We found that there’s still a real lack of leeway in scheduling for many frontline employees – almost a third (32%) say they feel that asking to change a shift for personal reasons would be perceived negatively by their employer. A further 40% have had to go to work after requesting a shift change because there has been no cover for them.
“There are obviously more practicalities to consider with flexibility for deskless staff, particularly in customer-facing roles, but that shouldn’t be an excuse for it being non-existent.”
The Quinyx State of the Deskless Workforce 2022 report also revealed that, in the UK:
- Only 49% of frontline employees have had a pay increase in the last year.
- 62% say they’ve received no training or educational resources to support their career development.
- 41% do not feel valued by their employer, and over a third of those (35%) say their boss views them as ‘disposable’.
- More than half (51%) say they have experienced understaffing in their workplace in the last 12 months – and 80% of those have felt stressed as a result.
- 60% have been to work sick in the last year as they felt they couldn’t afford to take time off.
- 64% feel uncomfortable speaking to their boss about how work-related stress is impacting their health.
Toma concludes: “There’s continued emphasis on the importance of workplace wellbeing – but this isn’t translating to the experiences of most deskless workers, unfortunately. One of the most heartening stats from our study is that the vast majority of workers – 71% – say they take pride in their work. These are the people who have kept everyone going over the last two years; employers need really to up their game and work on strong engagement strategies if they are going to hang onto their greatest assets – their employees.”
