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?New year, new job' resolution is abandoned

The global financial meltdown has put an end to the annual New Year’s resolution to get a new job, a survey revealed on Monday. This week is traditionally the start of the so-called ‘Great Escape’, when thousands of workers trawl the market place for better jobs and bigger salaries. But 80% of 2,000 workers polled would like to remain in their current jobs, and said that they felt fortunate to be in employment at the moment.

The study, carried out by NESTA, the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts, also revealed that half of employees will now work harder to do better in their current job amid the uncertainty which lies ahead. Half also said they couldn’t see themselves looking for a new job for the foreseeable future and 86% said they believed competition for jobs that do exist is fiercer than ever.

Jonathan Kestenbaum, NESTA’s Chief Executive said: “Employees have decided that where they can, they are going to sit tight, work harder and try to ride out the recession.”

However, employees recognize that they need a back-up plan. As such over 50% of workers would now be prepared to pay for their own training to secure employment, and 80% would consider transferring their existing skills to more buoyant sectors of the economy.

Jonathan Kestenbaum continued: “Amidst all the doom, there are actually growth sectors of the UK’s economy which require new skills and talent - including digital industries, low carbon technologies and environmental services. It is testament to the flexibility of UK employees that they are prepared to learn new skills to remain in employment.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .