UK employees are struggling with trust at work, according to the results of a new survey by Cezanne HR.
The survey, which had more than 1,000 respondents from across the UK, revealed that there is a lack of trust with HR.
Why Trust Matters
Trust is a crucial ingredient in any working relationship. Employees that trust their HR department perform better, have more motivation, and are more committed to the company. In contrast, employees who do not trust their HR teams come up with their own ideas on how things should be done, which may result in conflict within the workplace.
A lack of trust between HR and an employee can take a toll on a company’s performance, so it is important for employers to take steps to ensure that they create an environment where employees feel they can speak openly and honestly about their opinions.
The business will also benefit from having a workforce that trusts one another, as this helps promote teamwork and collaboration.
Trust plays an important role in the workplace, but many employees are finding that they have little faith in their HR departments.
Trust After The Pandemic
The survey showed that 14% of employees trust their HR department less since the pandemic, 54% felt no change in their attitude towards HR, and 32% trust HR more than before.
Are Senior Staff Favoured?
Nearly half of employees think that senior staff are favored over junior staff when it comes to HR-related matters
Often, the senior staff takes the opportunity to make decisions for others even though there may be better alternatives available. This can lead to employees feeling like their opinions are not important and it can also result in disagreements with fellow team members.
We Don’t Recognise Our HR Teams
Only 55% of employees would recognize their HR team if they met them in person, while 27% declared that they would not recognize them even if they were walking across the street opposite them.
This suggests that there is a lack of recognition and understanding between HR and employees, so the business should try and address this to build stronger relationships with their staff.
Getting Help Isn’t Easy?
Less than one in three people feel that getting help from HR is easy. HR being accessible is crucial because the majority of employees have a lack of trust in them. If they are not accessible then that lack of trust can become a problem for the company.
Accessibility does not just mean that they need to be physically present, it also means being available when needed and being understanding of the needs of their employees.
Improving Recognition
The team should work to improve the recognition of the HR department amongst their employees. This could be done by holding talks with smaller groups of employees, so they can get specific feedback on how to better engage with them.
The HR department should also look at ways in which they can make themselves more accessible to their employees so they don’t have to worry about whether or not they are available.
HR Teams That Champion Diversity Are More Trusted
A diverse workforce can help increase the overall level of trust in the workplace. This is because when there are people with different backgrounds and points of view, they are more likely to listen to each other’s opinions and encourage others to share theirs.
There may also be disagreements, but if people feel like their opinion will be listened to then this can help them feel like they have more support and less stress. This can help reduce emotional exhaustion and create better working relationships between employees.
In businesses that champion diversity, 65% trust HR to tell them about internal opportunities, compared to only 34% who don’t champion diversity.
67% in a diverse workplace trust HR to manage conflicts within the workplace, while non-diverse businesses only have this trust level at 33%
Increasing Communication Can Improve Trust
Higher trust at work increases employee satisfaction, which is important for recruiting and retaining talent. And it also results in more productivity because people are happier.
To increase the level of trust amongst their employees, employers need to make sure they communicate better with them.
HR software, like payroll systems, benefits management, and recruitment, can help to improve communication. When employees feel like HR is accessible or they know where to find them this can increase the level of trust among staff.
Companies should make sure that their staff can easily access information about how to get in touch with their HR department because this lack of information can cause the level of trust to decrease.
Final Thoughts
More than 1,000 respondents from across the UK completed the survey, so HR teams can use this information to ensure that they’re taking steps to improve employee trust in the department.
If an employee does not feel like they can trust HR, then it may be worth getting feedback from other employees on how they could make them feel more comfortable coming forward with their concerns.
The study found that there is inadequate faith in their company’s human resources department and this lack of trust can have negative consequences for businesses as it impacts performance and productivity.