Engaged Workers See Glass as Half-Full

Engagement is about attitude. So it’s not surprising that engaged employees have a tendency to see the glass as “half-full” and report positively on their company’s situation. Example: A new Gallup study reports that employees who are in engaged in their work and workplace are twice as likely to report their organization is hiring new workers as those who are actively disengaged. On the other hand, workers who are emotionally disconnected from their work and workplace are far more likely to report their organization is letting people go than those who are engaged. Respondents report these substantial differences in their organization’s hiring practices even though, collectively, overall U.S. job creation has held steady in recent months. These findings are from a special Gallup Daily tracking series conducted January through June 2011 to thoroughly explore American workers' engagement levels. Overall, in the first half of 2011, 30% of U.S. workers employed full or part time are engaged in their work and workplace, up slightly from 28% in late 2010. Approximately half of U.S. workers are not engaged, and nearly one in five are actively disengaged, unchanged from late 2010. Currently, the American workforce has 1.5 engaged employees for every actively disengaged employee. Gallup management research has found the ratio of engaged to actively disengaged employees varies greatly across different organizations, from more than eight engaged employees for every actively disengaged employee in the most highly motivated organizations to fewer than one engaged employee for every actively disengaged employee in the least motivated workforces. For more, visit www.gallup.com