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Study: Vast majority of German workers feel bosses neglect employee career progression

Düsseldorf, September 28, 2023. The vast majority of employees in Germany feel neglected by their manager when it comes to progressing their own careers. These findings come from the latest study released by the global recruiting platform The Stepstone Group, for which 10,000 people were surveyed across the working population of Germany. 

According to the survey, 70 percent feel that their employers do not provide them with sufficient support in regards to their professional development. In particular, employees in the skilled trades and customer service frequently lack career advice and support from their employer. According to the study, employers in both these occupations are also among the workers who are least satisfied with their employers overall. Across all industries, 45 percent of respondents said they were not entirely happy with their current employer. 

Most employees don‘t want to stay until retirement 

Consequently most employees (64 percent) cannot imagine staying with their current employer until retirement. "The need for talent in companies is high - demographic developments ensure strong demand even in economically uncertain times. At the same time, little has improved in terms of job satisfaction ", says The Stepstone Group labor market expert Dr. Tobias Zimmermann. "One reason: There is a lack of development prospects. Employees increasingly expect further training opportunities - be it through training or new areas of responsibility. Of course, this costs companies resources. But it is even more expensive not to do so. Because then they lose their employees to competitors or the skilled workers change industries, which further exacerbates the personnel shortage in areas that are under particular pressure." 

Four out of ten employees in the wrong job 

The study also provides plenty of clues as to why so many employees want to develop further: 46% of those surveyed feel they cannot properly apply their own skills and competencies in their current job. Just 16% are satisfied in their role without any reservations. "Too many people in Germany are stuck in the wrong job. We can't afford that in view of the coming era of great people shortage“, says Zimmermann. "It is good if these employees change their field of activity and continue their education. Because then they become not only more satisfied, but also more productive and successful. In the end, companies also benefit from this. It is therefore in their own interest to offer their employees development opportunities and support them." 

 
 
About the survey
How do people assess their job opportunities on the labor market now and in the future? How high is the willingness to change among employees and how strongly are employees themselves currently affected by the effects of the labor shortage? And how do HR managers view the current labor market situation? To answer these questions, The Stepstone Group surveyed around 10,000 people in July 2023 for the "Pulse Check Labor Market 2023" study. Among them were 1,700 executives and 1,100 HR managers. The results are representative of the working population.