Nearly one in ten (9%) UK workers say their bosses remind them of former US president and The Apprentice host Donald Trump, according to a new survey of workers by Reward Gateway | Edenred, the leading employee experience platform.

The new poll, which aimed to find out what employees think of their bosses, found that a whopping 96% of workers don’t feel fully appreciated by the companies they work for – while over a third (37%) said they don’t feel appreciated by their bosses specifically.

The research into our relationship with bosses found that:

• Nearly half (46%) of UK workers don’t feel there is enough reward and recognition from managers;
• Nearly a quarter (23%) are not consistently recognised for their work;
• 43% believe that bosses need to prioritise rewards and recognition in the next year;
• A quarter (25%) say they rarely feel appreciated at work.

While employees up and down the country battle against rampant inflation and a cost of living crisis, one surprise from the research emerged: 45% of workers said a simple thank you would be enough to make them feel appreciated by the companies they work for.

The research did, however, find a camaraderie of a different sort: three-quarters (77%) of British workers do feel appreciated by their fellow colleagues.

Nebel Crowhurst, Chief People Officer at Reward Gateway | Edenred, said:

“Being a boss is not easy. But then it’s not easy being a worker in an economic climate as tough as the one the UK currently finds itself in: workers are often expected to do more and more, with fewer resources, and this puts a toll on mental and physical wellbeing.

“UK workers clearly need some appreciation. Money, is, of course, one solution but it needs to be part of a whole package of support. Genuine appreciation that is expressed through verbal gratitude, rewards, subsidies, and benefits all go towards helping employees and making them feel valued. The power of appreciation is more about building bridges than building walls.”

The research polled 2,000 UK-based full-time employees. The polling was conducted by Censuswide between 23 January and 30 January 2024.

www.edenred.co.uk