What first began in the US with a staggering 4.3 million people quitting their jobs since January this year, a trend that can be described as a shift in our collective attitude and approach towards work. In our latest survey among workers aged between 18 and 50 years of age we found that while the trend has taken on in Asia, its effects are not the same as in the West. Our findings suggest that workers are conflicted between reconciling the pre-pandemic era’s status quo with today’s new normal.

Just as businesses were forced to adapt to the new way of working (operating digitally and remotely), workers have also had to adjust to new demands and challenges from both their bosses and their customers.

Retaining and engaging employees throughout these changes has been a particular struggle that many companies have yet to overcome. In our survey, only 30% of our respondents felt “highly satisfied” with their current job.

Looking for a pay raise

40% of our respondents claim to be looking for a new job. The motivation for at least half of them is to “earn more money”.

The level of inflation in most countries has been higher than the rate of increase for salaries. Even in the US, the consumer price index rose by 5.4% in 2021, but many Americans did not receive a 5.4% increase in their salaries.

This could explain why financial renumeration is prioritised by most workers looking at changing jobs.

Remote working preference

We received mixed responses from those we surveyed about their views towards remote working. While 60% somewhat agree that remote working has made them more productive, around 50% showed a preference for working full-time in the office, the rest were also split between a hybrid working model and working fully remotely.

Video conferencing and other digital tools that help us to collaborate remotely can only go so far to make up for the lack of sense of comradery and office culture possible when working together at the same location.

Re-evaluating career and personal goals

Over 60% of our respondents claimed to have re-evaluated their career and personal goals in the past 6 months.

Surprisingly 80% of our respondents would prefer to run their own businesses if given the oppourtunity. Perhaps the Great Resignation in Asia could result in a flare of entrepreneurial spirit with more small businesses and start-ups.