Millennials and women a ‘flight risk’ to employers

Millennials and women pose a higher flight risk to companies despite being the “happiest” at work, according to a new survey.

The study that also revealed the 100 best companies to work for in Kenya, noted that most Kenyans were unsatisfied with their current jobs.

Forty-seven per cent of those polled said they were likely to leave their current employer in the next six months, 41 per cent were neutral while only 12 per cent did not want to leave.

The findings are contained in an annual report dubbed “Best 100 Companies to Work For 2019” released yesterday by recruitment agency Brighter Monday.

The report says that the youngest age group, 18-24, are “more enthusiastic” for career growth despite not working for long and are concerned about “management mishaps” hence their flight risk.

“Respondents aged between 25-35 are the happiest age group at work, followed by 18-24. However, both age groups pose a high flight risk,” says the report.

“The oldest age group is the least happy group but not willing to leave their employer,” said the report. However, the younger age group is more enterprising.

“Their flight risk could be because they are still young, therefore they have a lot to explore in the job market compared to their older counterparts to whom salaries are a key motivator,” says the report.

Half of the women polled were willing to leave their current jobs compared to 46 per cent of the men.

The report said women wanted to leave in pursuit of higher salaries and to escape a toxic workplace. The pay gap was also an issue with the report showing that men earned more than women at a ratio of 60-40.

“It could be that the workplace is not conducive for them as they don’t feel valued or their employers do not meet their desired traits, or they simply leave for greener pastures,” said the report.

Safaricom was ranked the best company to work for followed by East African Breweries, United Nations, KCB Bank and Kenya Revenue Authority.

Brighter Monday Chief Executive Emmanuel Mutuma urged employers to understand employee satisfaction as it was crucial to their retention.

“It is vital for employers to understand that employee satisfaction is a major factor that can help determine the organisation’s overall well-being,” he said.