New research revealing what UK workers are looking for in their careers in 2022 and how businesses can combat what has been dubbed ‘The Great Resignation’, as it’s set to continue this year.

The survey of 1,000 UK workers reveals that almost a third (29%) of UK workers are considering moving to a new job this year. Findings also uncovered the industries most likely to be affected by this mass migration of staff, starting with Legal (44%), IT & Telecoms (42%), and Sales, Media & Marketing (40%). It additionally discovers the reasons why workers want to leave their current jobs and why nearly 1 in 3 (32%) have delayed leaving.

Companies offering hybrid or remote working are less likely to be affected by resignations, with almost 1 in 3 (28%) workers admitting that flexible working policies are encouraging them to stay in their current job. This is further supported by reasons from UK workers for wanting to leave their jobs. Almost one in five (16%) of those wanting to quit say it’s because their employer forces them to come to the office or workplace when they can work remotely, and 20% feel their employer favours those who work in the office over people who work remotely.

Unsurprisingly, the main reason (23%) for workers to look elsewhere is linked to salary and employers not offering bonuses or pay rises. Employees are also calling for better technology and ways to stay connected, with 13% choosing to leave a job due to their employer not investing in collaboration technology.

This is not surprising as in a hybrid work environment technology should act as the central place for work and social interactions; housing culture and enabling flexible and asynchronous work. Testament to this is how Kooth PLC, a company that provides digital mental health and wellbeing services, is using Slack to to help onboard new hires, house sensitive updates and provide a water-cooler space for lighter conversations.

Despite wanting to leave, almost a third of workers (32%) have delayed resigning in the past 12 months with the most popular reason (36%) being due to uncertainty over how the pandemic will affect the jobs market. For others, it’s because they’re yet to find another job (28%) or don’t want to lose their current flexible working structure (25%).

To combat ‘The Great Resignation’ and in order to attract and retain talent, employers are being encouraged to look to the future, and introduce new policies and practices which demonstrate they value their employees and their needs. The research indicates that the second most important benefit, after salary bonuses, for an employer to attract workers who are looking for a new job is flexible or remote working (30%), followed by extra holidays and days off (25%).

Chris Mills, Head of Customer Success EMEA at Slack, said: “With the significant worker reshuffle expected to continue this year, businesses must be in tune with what workers really want. Our research suggests that offering flexible or remote working, extra days off and salary bonuses, will help businesses attract and retain staff. At Slack, we have a ‘Fri-Yay’ initiative where on one Friday each month the entire company has the day off which allows people to take a breath and restore themselves.

“Communication methods are also crucial to attract and retain talent, with one in ten (10%) UK workers saying that having access to collaboration technology is making them stay in their current job. Businesses should therefore move towards digital headquarters which will improve productivity, foster innovation and help increase the diversity of company workforces. The digital HQ is powerful as it brings everyone, from employees, partners and customers, together in one place where work happens.”

Helping to transform business communications for a variety of teams, such as BT, Man Group, HSBC, Vodafone, Starling Bank, and Deliveroo, the UK is one of Slack’s biggest markets globally and serves 43% of the FTSE 100.

*Slack