What the public sector workforce wants

Public sector workers want to retain the flexibility they gained during the Covid-19 pandemic era, including how, where, and when they work, according to a global survey of public sector workers conducted by Boston Consulting Group and The Network, a global alliance of hiring platforms, including NIJobs, the Network member for Northern Ireland.

The survey included approximately 11,000 public sector workers from a total of 209,000 people in 190 countries who BCG and The Network polled as part of the organisation’s ongoing Decoding Global Talent series.

Over the past two years, public sector workers worldwide proved how capable, resilient, and flexible they are under even the most trying circumstances. The research highlights an appreciation of good workplace relationships, work-life balance, and the chance to do meaningful work. It also shines a light on workers’ willingness to learn new skills, which should serve them well as automation transforms the status quo of jobs across all industries.

Work Preferences

• Public sector employees pivoted to working remotely during the pandemic and want to maintain some flexibility over where they work: 69% want to retain some combination of onsite and remote work. The vast majority (89%) want to work remotely at least one day a week, and 69% two or three days a week.

• 48% prefer some combination of fixed and flexible hours, 23% want complete control over their work hours, and 29% prefer a job with set hours.

• The portion of public sector workers who would relocate to a different country for a job continues to decline, from 64% in 2014 to 44% today. In addition to the pandemic, stricter immigration and nationalistic policies and citizenship requirements have contributed to the decline. Canada is the most popular relocation destination, followed by Germany, Australia, the US, and the UK. However, 52% of public sector employees would work remotely for a foreign employer.

Key Job Factors

• Good relationships with colleagues and work-life balance are the elements of work that public sector employees value the most, followed by a good relationship with their supervisor.

• These employees place more value than the cross-industry average on being appreciated for their work, confirming a long-standing belief that people who work for public agencies see what they do as a calling as much as an occupation. 

• Seven of 10 say environmental responsibility has become more important, and more than half would not work for an employer with environmental beliefs that don’t match their own. Likewise, 71.3% believe diversity and equity are important, and 51.4% would exclude from a job search an employer whose beliefs don’t match their own.

Receptive To Reskilling

• Only 35% of public sector employees feel threatened by automation, second only to nonprofit employees of the industries we surveyed. These employees may feel immune from automation’s effects because of the digital transformation they already went through and because human interaction is a key element of many public sector positions.

• Even so, 64% would learn new skills to change jobs or careers, and 63% spend at least a few weeks a year taking classes or developing their skills another way. Learning on the job is their preferred way to reskill, and online classes are also popular.

Attraction And Retention Strategies

Public sector employers should develop workforce plans that accommodate employees’ preferences while optimizing their performance and staying true to an organization’s mission. To do that, employers can:

• Use a strategic workforce plan. Analyze the makeup of the current workforce against anticipated future needs to determine a talent strategy.
• Create comprehensive hybrid- or remote-work strategies. Cultivate a mindset of “we’re all in this together,” with principles that support trust, togetherness, and flexibility in where and when people work.
• Lead differently. A workforce in which many people work virtually requires leaders to have different skills. Support direct reports regardless of where they work and good working relationships among coworkers.
• Let employees know their work matters. Provide feedback on people’s progress, celebrate their successes, and help them see the real-world impact of their jobs. Recognizing people’s accomplishments supports positive engagement and job satisfaction and can help retain top talent.
• Invest in upskilling and reskilling. Helping employees obtain the skills needed to transition from one role to another is more cost-effective than large-scale recruitment of new hires who need to learn the same skills. Incorporate skill-building into the work that people do every day, and use business metrics to measure its impact.
• Promote social values. Appeal to current and future workers’ values by advancing activities related to social and environmental issues, including involvement in climate action and sustainable development.