Ryan FowlerGallup’s 2024 State of the Global Workplace report has found that global employee engagement fell for only the second time in 12 years, slipping from 23% in 2023 to 21% last year.
The decline is largely attributed to a notable drop in engagement among managers, whose engagement fell from 30% to 27%. Individual contributor engagement remained flat at 18%.
According to Gallup, younger managers (under 35) and female managers were hit hardest, with respective drops of five and seven percentage points.
Jim Harter, chief workplace scientist at Gallup, said: “Manager engagement affects team engagement, which affects productivity. Business performance – and ultimately GDP growth – is at risk if executive leaders do not address manager breakdown.”
Gallup recommends that organisations tackle the issue by increasing access to training for managers, encouraging effective coaching, and offering ongoing support. According to the research, active disengagement is halved among managers who receive training, and engagement can increase by up to 22% for those participating in coaching-focused development.
Europe again reported the lowest engagement of any global region, at just 13%, a figure two points lower than it was in 2011. Gallup found engagement levels below 10% in several countries including France, Poland, and Switzerland, while the UK recorded 10%, down from 17% a decade ago.
Romania reported the highest engagement in the region at 35%, while Sweden (24%) and Albania (29%) also saw significant increases. Conversely, Spain’s engagement has halved since the early 2010s, and Germany recorded a new low of 12%.
Gallup’s report also found that while 57% of European workers believe it is a good time to find a job – a regional high – less than half (47%) said they were “thriving” in life. Globally, wellbeing has declined to the lowest level since 2021.
Despite continued pressure on workers, European reports of anger dropped slightly to 14%, below Gallup’s usual 15–19% range, while global reports of stress, sadness, and loneliness remained elevated compared to pre-pandemic levels.
