Workers’ confidence in the US is nearing its highest level ever and continuing a year-long trend of positive progression. Staffing provider Yoh and HRO Today magazine reported their quarterly Worker Confidence index rose to a level of 107.1 in the first quarter, up from a reading of 103.2 in the fourth quarter and the second-largest quarter-over-quarter increase in the index’s history. 

“The results of the most recent Worker Confidence Index show that the strong job market has made workers more comfortable about current roles and future job prospects. However, that doesn’t mean companies and leaders can afford to become complacent in how they engage with their employees or future prospects,” said Jonathan Grosso, senior VP, enterprise solution at Yoh. “In today’s current job climate, where highly talented workers can be difficult to find and retain, it’s more important than ever that companies focus on providing an exceptional employment experience and work to enhance their talent acquisition capabilities in order to attract and retain high performing workers.”

Yoh’s index measures workers’ perceptions of four drivers of worker confidence: perceived likelihood of a job loss, a promotion, and a raise as well as a perceived overall trust in a company. The first-quarter increase was led by increases in perceived likelihood of promotion, which improved by 9.7 points, and perceived likelihood of a raise, which grew by 4.6 points.

Perceived job security fell by 2.3 points, while trust in company leadership fell by 1.5 points. Though 55.8% of the youngest respondents still expressed confidence in company leadership in Q1 2018, trust in leadership continues to decline steadily as the age of respondents increases.

The survey series includes approximately 3,000 people ages 18 and up working full-time in the US.