'Tis Era of "Belt Tightening" - Employee Engagement Plunges to 32%

 Dow, IBM, and SAP didn't bulk up on manpower during the pandemic. Yet, they are joining the corporations which did overhire and have laid off. 

The Wall Street Journal reports that this development in the labor market is being called "belt tighening." Essentially employees are being told: We have decided to cut costs. You have to go. And that's that. 

For even those who have been able to hang onto their jobs, they tell me in our coaching sessions that there is no "stop" mechanism on what employers may be mandating. The requirements usually escalate. You either buy in or you know you could be put on a PIP (Proposal to Improve Performance), then be axed. The law of supply and demand, at least as the employer interprets it, overrides all other values.

What more and more employees are doing to cope, at least emotionally, is to develop hedges by creating multiple sources of income. In addition to their day jobs they pick up gig assignments, invest in income property, and launch mini e-businesses. Most envision being business owners eventually. 

It should have been expected that Gallup found that employee engagement dropped to 32% in 2022, down from 34% the year before. 

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