More younger staff distrust employers

An increasing number of young workers do not trust their employers and refuse to believe what their bosses tell them, according to a study.

A survey of 1,000 workers in UK aged between 16 and 24 revealed that a third did not believe most or any of what they were told by their employer, compared with one in five last year. Recruitment consultants Badenoch & Clark said research showed that workers in the legal profession were particularly sceptical of their employers, while human resources staff were most likely to trust their bosses.

Associate director Guy Emmerson said: “Without a culture of trust in the workplace, employers will struggle to foster employee engagement and in turn retain their workforce. As recruitment activity levels pick up, employers need to consider the strength of their relationship with employees across all levels of the business, or run the risk of staff voting with their feet.

“Younger employees – the so-called Generation Y – have specific expectations of their employers, so encouraging more two-way conversations on business performance will prove vital to increasing levels of trust and gauging job satisfaction.”