Yahoo Finance Coronavirus: Confidence in business leaders to navigate crisis hits low
UK productivity could be severely damaged as workers feel business leaders are unable to provide them with the support they need through the current crisis.
A latest survey by research firm Karian and Box reveals three in 10 workers say they are unable to juggle their work and personal lives at present, and 27% feel their organisation is not supporting their health and wellbeing.
The stats also show that half of workers currently lack motivation and 42% feel anxious, which is testing the resilience of workforce morale. Other major areas of concern include worry around job security and domestic issues such as homeschooling.
As a result employers are being urged to do more as a third of employees say they have no confidence in business leaders to navigate the COVID-19 crisis.
READ MORE: Half of UK employees ready to return to work
Economists added that if these problems persist, then long-term productivity in the UK will decrease.
James Tarbit, managing director at Karian and Box comments: “The crisis has created an unprecedented leadership challenge. Like everyone else, business leaders are adjusting to challenges they’ve never faced before.
“While we should definitely acknowledge the work being done to communicate and conduct business remotely, employers need to ensure they keep the needs of their workforce front of mind.
“By listening to their employees, leaders can ensure their teams enter this next phase focused, energised and determined to help their businesses through the recovery.”
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, the UK had some of the worst productivity rates in the world.
UK productivity growth has lagged behind other economies since the 1970s and the country has suffered virtually zero growth in labour productivity since 2008.
Economists have blamed weak GDP growth, low-skilled zero hour contracts and a lack of innovation and dynamism from UK firms to introduce the latest technologies.
