Dive Brief:
- Employee confidence increased slightly in March, climbing to 45.2%, up from a revised record low of 44.7% in February, according to the latest data from Glassdoor, released Tuesday. The number reflects the share of workers surveyed who say they have a positive six-month business outlook.
- Concerns about tariffs, federal funding, layoffs and business uncertainty continue to affect workers’ outlook, Glassdoor’s Lead Economist Daniel Zhao wrote in an analysis.
- There’s also a record low confidence level among entry-level workers, Zhao said; among those workers, confidence dropped to 43.4%, the lowest level since Glassdoor started collecting data in April 2016.
Dive Insight:
“March’s employee confidence data paints a cloudy picture of employee sentiment amid ongoing economic challenges. The notable rise in mentions of ‘recession’ in Glassdoor reviews underscores the growing anxiety about economic stability,” Zhao said in an emailed statement.
The industries that experienced the greatest drops in employee confidence were all ones severely affected by DOGE layoffs and federal funding cuts — aerospace and defense, government and public administration, and nonprofit and non-governmental organizations.
Goods-producing sectors like manufacturing; energy, mining and utilities; and construction, repair and maintenance services all also saw “stark drops in employee confidence” compared to the previous year, per Glassdoor. “Trade policy whiplash is injecting significant uncertainty for businesses that rely on global supply chains,” Zhao wrote.
Right now, businesses are largely focused on preserving the status quo but could turn to reductions in force if economic uncertainty continues, as evidenced by the flailing stock market, a ManpowerGroup executive recently said.
While the most recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed a steady jobs report, a closer look “reveals that employers are exercising caution across nearly all sectors,” the executive said.
