Over half of the UK, lack the confidence to apply for a new job.
This is according to CV-Library who found that 52 per cent of employees do not have enough confidence to apply for certain roles.
The research also found that despite 73 per cent of UK employees being confident about their appearance, only 47 per cent feel confident about their career prospects.
Only 43 per cent of more mature professionals aged 55-64-year-olds are confident about their job prospects, followed by 43 per cent of 45-55-year-olds and 49 per cent of 35-44-year-olds.
Lack of confidence seems to hold back employees from aspects from within the workplace. With 47 per cent saying they lack the confidence to ask for a pay rise, 33 per cent asking for a promotion and 22 per cent building relationships in the workplace.
Younger employees found asking for a pay rise particularly worrying for under 18s with 74 per cent saying this, with 57 per cent of 18-24-year-olds and 54 per cent of 25-year-olds saying the same.
Lee Biggins, founder and CEO of CV-Library, said:
Confidence is such an important asset in all areas of life, but particularly so in the workplace. After all, when employees feel there is no direction to their careers or don’t have clear goals to work towards, it can stifle productivity, diminish job satisfaction and ultimately, impact your bottom line as you struggle to retain experienced members of staff.
Seeing as work is such a huge part of people’s lives, it’s imperative that businesses find a way to address these issues. Perhaps start by formalising a mandatory annual or quarterly review process – this can open the lines of communication about employee career progression and get the ball rolling for bigger conversations such as a promotion or pay rise.
Alongside this, ensure that you mention career progression opportunities in your job adverts, as this can certainly help to attract more applicants to your roles. Either way, with the UK in career confidence crisis, employers need to make changes in order to stay ahead.
Darius is the editor of HRreview. He has previously worked as a finance reporter for the Daily Express. He studied his journalism masters at Press Association Training and graduated from the University of York with a degree in History.
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