Employee Engagement Statistics: 25+ Critical Insights for 2024

Statistics are important, we would argue employee engagement statistics are among the most important for companies. Employee engagement in the US has hit an 11-year low, with 4.8 million fewer employees engaged in Q1 2024 versus Q4 2023 (Gallup). That’s worrisome since employee engagement has a significant impact on business outcomes such as retention, productivity, customer satisfaction, and profitability. The impact of lackluster employee engagement is evident in trends such as quiet quitting and “The Great Quit.”

But it’s not all doom and gloom. Despite the national downward trend, some companies are excelling with engagement rates that eclipse 70%, far exceeding the national average of 30% (Gallup). Statistics such as these lend powerful insights into the value of employee engagement and how engagement drives better business outcomes. To that end, here are 25+ critical employee engagement statistics you should know in 2024.

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Employee Engagement Statistics

By the Numbers

Engaged employees report high satisfaction with their jobs, clarity in their roles, and a strong connection to their employers’ missions. Disengaged employees report the opposite: they feel detached from their companies, unclear about their roles, and that their needs aren’t met. Actively disengaged employees are disgruntled and disloyal. Consider this employee engagement research from Gallup:

• 30% of US employees are engaged
• 17% are actively disengaged
• In 2024, the ratio of engaged to actively disengaged employees is 1.8-to-1. That represents a downward trend, as the ratio in 2023 was 2.1-to-1
• On average, organizations that follow best practices report 70% employee engagement

Key Insights: Despite declining employee engagement nationwide, top organizations continue to achieve high engagement rates, illustrating the value of a well-executed employee engagement strategy.

RELATED: Engaged Employees: How a Wellness Program Can Help

Engagement by Generation

Average engagement levels vary generationally, as illustrated by these employee engagement statistics reported in Inc.:

• Baby Boomers: 36%
• Gen X: 31%
• Gen Z and Millennials: 35%

Key Insights: Engagement is lowest among Gen X employees, who deserves a deeper dive. Why are older and younger employees more engaged than middle-aged employees? Could it be that older employees are accustomed to working in an office and younger employees are granted more remote and hybrid work opportunities? Does Gen X feel left out? Exploring these questions can help businesses better understand their employees’ needs.

Engagement by Work Location

Average engagement also varies by employee work location, per the following Gallup employee engagement data:

• Hybrid: 35%
• Remote: 33%
• On-Site: 25%

Key Insights: On-site employees have the lowest engagement rates – lower than the national average of 30% – while hybrid employees have the highest engagement rates, suggesting the return-to-office movement might not be in the best interest of employees and organizations. It’s critical to provide a healthy work-life balance.

Impact and Benefits of Employee Engagement

High employee engagement offers significant business benefits, as evidenced by the following employee engagement statistics.

Median percent differences between top-quartile and bottom-quartile units (Gallup):

• Productivity: 14% increase
• Customer loyalty: 10% increase
• Employee wellbeing: 66% increase
• Profitability: 23% increase
• Absenteeism: 81% decrease

Executive perception (Quantum Workplace):

• 92% of executives say companies with high employee engagement have happy customers
• 81% say highly engaged employees perform better

Retention and dedication (Gartner):

• Engaged employees are 31% more likely to stay at their companies
• Engaged employees are 31% more likely to exceed expectations
• Engaged employees are 15% more likely to contribute more than their coworkers

Key Insights: Employee engagement offers significant benefits, including increased productivity and profitability with reduced absenteeism. Employees benefit, too, via increased wellbeing, prompting the age-old chicken or egg question: does engagement lead to wellbeing, or does wellbeing contribute to engagement? It likely goes both ways. Engaged employees feel valued, which improves wellbeing. Companies that promote physical, mental, emotional, and social health foster wellbeing, which improves engagement.

RELATED: 7 Important Reasons to Offer Employee Wellbeing at Work

Costs of Employee Disengagement

While employee engagement benefits organizations, disengagement carries hefty costs. Consider these stats:

• Employee disengagement costs the economy nearly $2 trillion per year (Business Insider)
• Disengagement costs median S&P 500 companies $282 million annually (McKinsey & Company)
• Disengaged employees cost the global economy $8.8 trillion in lost productivity (Gallup)
• As many as 85% of employees are thinking about changing jobs this year, up from 67% last year (The Wall Street Journal)
• On average, it costs $4,700 to hire a new employee, but total costs (including recruiting, onboarding, and training) can balloon that cost to 3 to 4 times the position’s salary (SHRM)

Key Insights: Disengaged employees are likely to produce lackluster work, quit their jobs, and cost their companies money. A well-executed engagement strategy is integral to employee satisfaction and long-term return on investment.

RELATED: How to Use Wellness Programs to Boost Team Morale

Employee Engagement Factors

Many factors are considered when gauging employee engagement. Here are the criteria Gallup uses to calculate its employee engagement score (we recommend reading the full Gallup report for insights into the percentage of employees who feel these needs are met):

• Job satisfaction
• Knowing expectations
• Having tools to complete work
• Doing work employees are good at
• Recognition
• Feeling cared for
• Employers encouraging development
• Feeling opinions matter
• Job importance
• Commitment to quality
• Having a best friend at work
• Conversations about progress
• Learning and growth opportunities

Wellness programs and career advancement are also important engagement factors, evidenced by the following Zippia statistics:

• 89% of employees who work for companies with wellness programs are engaged and happy with their jobs
• 47% of employees say career advancement opportunities are very important to job satisfaction and engagement

Key Insights: The top performing companies – those that boast an average 70% employee engagement rate – care about their employees. They clearly define expectations, provide the necessary tools, value their voices, provide ongoing opportunities, and give recognition. Moreover, many implement wellness programs that contribute to overall employee wellbeing and job satisfaction.

RELATED: 17 Employee Wellness Program Ideas to Increase Engagement

FAQs

What is employee engagement?

Employee engagement is the level of commitment and enthusiasm employees have for their work. Engaged employees correlate organizational success with personal success, and they often go above and beyond to ensure business goals are met.

There are three levels of employee engagement:

• Engaged: Employees who are committed and enthusiastic about their jobs
• Disengaged: Employees who are noncommitted and indifferent to their work
• Actively disengaged: Employees who are disgruntled and disloyal

What are the benefits of employee engagement?

High employee engagement offers many business benefits, including increased productivity, profitability, and customer satisfaction as well as decreased absenteeism. Good engagement also improves employee wellbeing, which can lead to reduced healthcare benefit costs for employers.

How can you measure employee engagement?

There are multiple ways to gauge employee engagement, including surveys, employee net promoter scores, exit interviews, absenteeism rates, and turnover rates. It’s best to evaluate multiple factors to arrive at an employee engagement score you can use as a benchmark for improvement.

How can you improve employee engagement?

Employee engagement improvement strategies include clarifying expectations, providing the tools employees need to succeed, and offering ongoing opportunities for advancement. It’s important to create a healthy, nurturing environment in which employees can flourish by doing what they’re good at and passionate about, then recognizing employees for their work. It’s important to think like employees, listen to employees, and remember the role employees play in carrying out your mission. Well-designed wellness programs are powerful employee engagement initiatives because they foster physical, mental, emotional, nutritional, occupational, financial, and social wellness.