The paradigm shift between employers and employees continues in the United States, with 33% of employees saying they were engaged in their work throughout 2023 with their disengaged counterparts costing employers $1.9 trillion in lost productivity.
The figures come from Gallup's latest survey of U.S. employee engagement, released Jan. 23. Results show stagnated engagement for the second half of 2023 following a slight improvement earlier in the year, dipping from 34% of employees reporting engagement midyear to 33% by year's end. Each percentage point gain or drop in engagement represents approximately 1.6 million full- or part-time employees in the U.S.
In 2023, the percentage of actively disengaged workers fell to 16% from 18% the year prior. Fifty percent of employees were not engaged.
Active disengagement occurs when employees act out on their disengagement; not engaged or disengaged has been dubbed "quiet quitting," when employees put in the minimum amount of effort to keep their jobs. Nationally, not engaged or actively disengaged employees account for approximately $1.9 trillion in lost productivity, Gallup reports.