Career development is leading factor for employees in the Gulf
Pay is not the most important factor affecting employee attrition in the Gulf region, according to a report from recruitment giant Hays.
The ‘Hays Employee Attrition in the GCC Report 2019’, released this morning, shows the top two reasons that working professionals in the Gulf region look to move employer are ‘to start a new career’ and ‘lack of future opportunities’.
“These findings certainly reinforce what candidates are telling us when we assist them with their job search,” says Chris Greaves, managing director of Hays Middle East.
“While salary is important, how an employee performs and how long they choose to stay with an employer is hugely influenced by the career development opportunities offered to them.”
For Generation Z (born after 1995) the report found that, unlike their older contemporaries, ‘job security’ is not even a consideration when deciding on career and employment. Instead, developmental opportunities are by far the most significant influencer.
“Career opportunities are becoming the overriding focus for professionals in the region, and this is only likely to grow in importance as the younger generations of today become the core workforce of tomorrow,” says Greaves.
When looking at the average length of time workers typically stay with an employer in the region, the report found that the greatest proportion, nearly 40%, like to stay more than five years.
“These are incredibly interesting insights for employers to see, as there is often widespread belief that high employee turnover is inevitable in the region as expat workers leave to return to their home countries after only a short period of time here.
“In reality, however, this research shows that longevity of employment is incredibly important to both national and expat workers, and that employee turnover is entirely in the hands of the employer and the prospects they offer,” says Greaves.
Of those 600 professionals who took part in the research, 33% have no regular appraisal and 66% received no role-specific training in the past 12 months.
• Comment below on this story. You can also tweet us to tell us your thoughts or share this story with a friend. Our editorial email is [email protected]
