The declines in belonging coincide with increases in mental health issues and concerns about workplace toxicity, a new report indicates.

In 2024, workers are reporting double-digit declines in feelings of belonging and connectedness at work, according to an Oct. 1 report from Businessolver, which offers benefits and HR technology solutions.

The major declines have occurred even as employees acknowledge that corporate diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) efforts are becoming more visible, the report found.

“We’re seeing significant declines in feelings of belonging and connectedness among employees and CEOs, with notable disparities across generations and industry verticals. Yet despite these declines, awareness for corporate DEIB efforts increased year-over-year,” Rae Shanahan, workplace empathy advocate and chief strategy officer for Businessolver, said in a statement.

“This is particularly interesting given the current climate of DEIB de-prioritization,” she said. “While divestment is gaining headlines, our data paints a different story of increased awareness and credit given to leaders and organizations for their DEIB efforts. Even so, employees and leaders alike feel their companies should be doing more.”

In a survey of 3,100 employees, HR professionals and CEOs, 65% of employees said they feel like they belong at their workplace due to DEIB efforts, marking a year-over-year decrease of 14 points. HR pros had a decline of 10 points to 78%, and CEOs had a decline of 8 points to 88%.

Numbers are even lower for connectedness, with 62% of employees saying they feel connected to peers, marking a 17-point decrease, followed by HR pros with a 5-point decline to 79% and CEOs with a drop of 10 points to 86%.

At the same time, the percentage of employees who said their company has DEIB initiatives rose from 43% in 2023 to 55% in 2024. And those who said DEIB efforts had become more visible at their company rose from 62% in 2023 to 68% in 2024.

Read full article here