The majority, or 69%, of employees in UK and Ireland are worried or stressed about their ability to pay for essentials if the economy worsens over the coming months, according to research from HR software firm Personio.

The research showed that a further 22% are concerned about losing their job while 20% are worried they will need to take on a second job to support themselves.

Although two fifths, or 40%, of businesses have introduced initiatives to help employees with the rising cost of living, while 24% are not planning to run any initiatives at all.

Personio added that where employees are not supported, this could damage motivation and productivity, potentially resulting in people leaving, or ‘quiet quitting’.

A quarter, or 24%, of employees surveyed state they are unhappy with their employer and 37% of employees are still planning to look for another job in the next 6-12 months.

Personio’s research also polled HR workers. It found that HR teams are also struggling against a lack of senior support with 42% of HR managers citing lack of budget as the main reason for not actively supporting their employees with the cost of living crisis, while 27% cite a lack of senior support.

Pete Cooper, Director of People Partners and Analytics at Personio, said, “Employers know their employees are facing significant anxieties around the rising cost of living, but not enough of them have grasped this issue and truly held out their hand to support. Having a productive and engaged workforce is essential to any successful business, no more so than during uncertain economic conditions. With a significant number of workers feeling overwhelmed and burnt out, employers must re-engage them by flexing their support and doing all they can to help them. Even modest efforts such as discount schemes, travel loans or salary sacrifice schemes could have a positive impact.”

The latest data from the Office of National Statistics showed that in the UK growth in average total pay (including bonuses) in real terms (adjusted for inflation) over the year, fell by 2.6% and regular pay (excluding bonuses) fell by 2.7%. This remains among the largest falls in growth since comparable records began in 2001.