Firstup has published research suggesting that many North American workers who describe themselves as engaged are still considering leaving their jobs. The survey covered 3,093 workers in the US and Canada across corporate, managerial and hourly roles.
The findings highlight a gap between traditional engagement measures and employee retention. The report found that 82% of corporate employees, 89% of managers and 75% of hourly workers said they were engaged or highly engaged at work. Yet 43%, 46% and 40% respectively said they were likely to look for a new job within the next year.
Firstup argues that engagement alone no longer offers a reliable measure of workforce stability. It points to communication failures, weak trust in leadership and human resources, and pressure on frontline managers as factors contributing to stress, lower productivity and a higher risk of staff turnover.
"This disconnect means that engagement alone is no longer a reliable signal of workforce stability," said Bill Schuh, Chief Executive Officer of Firstup. "Organisations must do more to deliver critical information in a consistent, targeted, and measurable way, especially to the frontline. When employees have to work just to stay informed, engagement can quickly shift to burnout and loss of productivity, not loyalty."
Missed Updates
Many respondents said they had missed essential workplace information. Across all three groups, 61% to 67% said they had failed to receive an important policy or procedural update, even though most workers received employer communications at least once a week.
Half of managers and hourly workers said their employer does not have an effective way to share information with them. Among managers, 70% reported challenges communicating with hourly teams, while only 29% were confident their current methods kept workers compliant.
The results suggest a particular burden on middle management. Managers remain workers' most trusted source of information, but they are also carrying more of the communication load within systems many respondents view as ineffective.
Productivity Costs
Firstup also linked poor communication to lost time and higher stress. Forty-three per cent of corporate employees and 37% of managers said they spend three or more hours each week looking for basic information needed to do their jobs.
Respondents linked miscommunication to several operational problems. Across roles, 40% to 45% said it increased stress, while 32% to 40% said it reduced productivity. Another 29% to 35% said it led to missed policies, and 9% to 12% cited safety effects.
About one in four workers across the groups said communication problems made them want to look for another job. This suggests the issue extends beyond frustration with internal systems and can influence decisions about whether to stay with an employer.
Role Divide
The report found notable differences between office-based and frontline staff. Strong communication was cited as a driver of engagement by 52% of managers and 49% of corporate employees, compared with 35% of hourly workers.
Among disengaged hourly employees, 75% said they feel their employer does not care about their wellbeing. This points to a weaker communication experience on the frontline, where access to information and tools may be more limited than in corporate settings.
Workers across groups gave similar answers when asked what they want from employers beyond pay. The main requests were that employers show they care, improve communication and provide better tools. Those priorities were selected by 50% to 52%, 43% to 48% and 38% to 47% of respondents respectively.
AI Access
The survey also highlighted a divide over workplace use of artificial intelligence. Hourly workers were more likely than corporate employees to say AI could improve communication, at 42% compared with 30%.
Yet 60% of hourly workers said they had never used AI at work. Firstup said access, rather than resistance, appears to be the main barrier across nearly every age group in the research.
Schuh said this imbalance leaves the workers most affected by communication breakdowns with the fewest tools to address them. "Frontline managers are carrying a disproportionate share of communication load, and it's causing a ripple effect on employee morale and the bottom line," he said. "AI holds great promise to help address the issue-improving communication, productivity, and efficiency-yet the hourly workers most affected by these communications breakdowns are the least likely to have access to the right tools. To bridge these gaps and drive critical business outcomes like retention and safety, organizations need to prioritize putting the right technology into every worker's hands."