Brexit: YouGov Survey Shows Employees are Anxious

 

Quantifiable Uncertainty

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The survey revealed that just over a third (33%) of UK employees have seen a negative effect on their business as a result of Brexit. Of the 33%, around half of them (47%) said that staff are feeling much more anxious and stressed in the current climate of uncertainty. The main concerns were as follows:

• Wage stagnation
• Job losses

While employees in businesses all across the country are feeling impacted, the most affected were those in London. 47% of London workers said that Brexit has had a negative impact on their business. 54% went on to say that they were worried about their future as a result. In terms of industry, legal professionals were the most concerned about Brexit fallout (59%).

Most Affected Sectors

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The research also showed that 40% of businesses in the telecoms, IT, and manufacturing sectors were the most affected by the unpredictable Brexit environment.

Those operating in leisure and hospitality have been the least affected so far, with only 18% of businesses in these industries citing problems directly related to Brexit.

Damaging lack of Clarity Continues

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Employee concerns are certainly valid. Despite the fact that wages have continued to rise, there are some clear indications that earnings growth is about to drastically slow down. There is a combination of reasons for this, and continued uncertainty is unlikely to have positive effects.

Being worried about job security is also understandable. Although the UK employment sector has continued to be a rock in the Brexit storm (so far at least), it’s important to remember that hiring has started to drop in recent months. Not only that, hiring new employees is much cheaper for businesses than investing, and a more flexible strategy in uncertain climates. It’s much less costly to have to let employees go that renege on an expensive investment in property or equipment, for example.

There is, of course, no way to know for sure what the actual fallout of a no-deal Brexit will be until it happens, although overlooking the ever-increasing evidence that it isn’t going to be good for businesses or employees could certainly be argued to be unwise. Regardless, whether the UK leaves the EU on the 31st of October, or delays the deadline once again, a lack of clear government provisioning and strategy is likely to continue to cost both UK business and staff.