What do employees want? How can businesses act?

To be efficient, companies have every interest in improving the quality of life and working conditions of employees. Doing nothing increases disengagement.

IF companies want to be more efficient, they must act for the well-being of their employees. There is urgency if we are to believe the study published by the Qualisocial firm this week. He surveyed 3,000 employees representative of the private and public sectors and the results are not very optimistic: 42% are disengaged, that is to say not very enthusiastic and not very invested in their work.

In detail, two out of three employees go to work mechanically, or even backwards. 23% are unhappy with their workload. It’s not much better in terms of mental health, with one in two feeling stressed and one in four feeling that their mental health is deteriorating. This is particularly true in the 40-54 age group.

Employees demand QVCT

The card to play for businesses is called “QVCT”: quality of life and working conditions. The Labor Code now requires companies with more than 50 employees to negotiate on quality of life and working conditions. But without obligation of result. However, according to the study, employees are clamoring for QVCT, four years after the covid epidemic which disrupted relationships at work. Nearly 90% believe that quality of life and working conditions should be a priority or important issue for employers, and that this is not sufficiently the case currently.

This is especially true in terms of health and safety at work, a good atmosphere, and the organization of daily tasks. But also clarity in internal communication, sharing of information, space given to employees and listening to them. According to the study, QVCT produces significant effects: a company that launches an approach around quality of life and working conditions, affirms Camy Puech, the founder of Qualisocial, finds five times more engaged employees, therefore enthusiastic and motivated, and 66% more employees in good shape. Conversely, the absence of an approach leads to three times more disengaged employees and twice as many employees in poor health. Ultimately, the study concludes, 70% of companies that act on QVCT are more efficient than those that do not do so.