UK employees are one of the most dissatisfied in Europe – 90 percent lack enthusiasm for their jobs, with nearly 2 in 5 (39 percent) considering a career change in the next 12 months.
Which industries are struggling the most with employee retention?
The firm GIGAcalculator has analysed occupation data to uncover the sectors with the highest turnover rates. This information has been shared with Digital Journal.
Employee retention woes: Which industries are the worst at retaining staff?
Occupations by turnover (highest turnovers at the top):
• Hospitality & food services
• Arts, entertainment & recreation
• Wholesale & retail trade
• Publishing & media
• Human resources
• Construction
• Marketing & PR
• Healthcare
• Transportation
• Agriculture, forestry, fishing & hunting
• Mining, quarrying, oil & gas extraction
• Education
• Manufacturing
• Science, IT & technology
• Utilities & energy
• Banking & finance
• Public administration
• Property & real estate
• Legal services
The hospitality and food services industry has the highest turnover, with 1 in 3 leaving within a year. Given the demanding nature of the job, irregular hours and relatively low wages – averaging around £31,500 per year – many seek out other opportunities.
Coming in second, the arts, entertainment and recreation sector sees 26.29 percent of its workforce considered job hoppers with a median tenure of 2.7 years. Having one of the lowest average annual incomes on the list (£30,069), alongside the hospitality industry, passion alone is not enough to keep workers committed – low pay makes these industries more prone to job hopping.
In third place, the wholesale and retail trade industry sees 1 in 4 employees change jobs annually, with the median tenure standing at 3.1 years.
Rounding off the top five are the publishing and media industry, and human resources, with 21.4 percent and 21.2 percent of job hoppers, respectively. Ironically, HR – the sector responsible for hiring and retention – struggles to retain its own workforce. Meanwhile, media professionals face growing uncertainty with nearly 4,000 journalism jobs eliminated in 2024 alone.
The industries best at retaining employees
Legal services have the lowest turnover rate with 17.5 percent changing jobs within a year. The property and real estate sector follows closely at 18 percent. Public administration ranks third among the most stable industries. Boasting the longest median tenure of 6.2 years and a notably higher average salary of £45,450, government jobs offer stability and strong benefits that keep employees on board.
Other industries with stronger retention include banking and finance, utilities and energy, and science, IT, and tech, each offering average annual salaries exceeding £41,000 – among the highest on the list.
Which age groups are the biggest job hoppers?
Gen Z and Millennials are at the forefront of job hopping. In contrast, older age groups show far greater career stability. Workers aged 35 to 44 have a markedly lower job-hopping rate of 17.5 percent, dropping to just 12.6 percent for those aged 45 to 54.
