Indian workers willing to forgo income and status for work with real meaning

NEW DELHI, INDIA: A new international workforce survey conducted by Kelly Services, has found that people in India derive a greater sense of pride and self confidence in their jobs than workers in any other country.

The survey also found that more than half are prepared to accept a lower wage or a lesser role if their work contributes to something more important or meaningful.

The Kelly Global Workforce Index sought the views of nearly 1,00,000 people in 34 countries including approximately 3,500 in India.

According to the survey, 94 percent of people in India say their work gives them a sense of pride and 92 per cent say it raises their self confidence. In addition, 62 per cent of people in India will forego income or status to do something more meaningful.

Dhirendra Shantilal, Senior VP, APAC, Kelly Services says “A significant number of people are actually prepared to give up some of their salary and their position if they can do something that is important and meaning to them and their organization.”

The findings reveal the younger workers as those most concerned about their career directions. While they is more comfortable with their career paths, they are more likely to switch jobs in the coming year.

Across all the generations, males (62 percent) as compared to females (60 percent) are more likely to be concerned about career prospects and plan to look for alternative work in larger numbers.

Shantial said the findings highlight the importance of employers helping to bring out the best in their workforce by tailoring work that is engaging, stimulating and which encourages people to learn new skills.

“Employees’ aspirations will change markedly over the course of a career so it is important to recognize the things that are important at each stage in order to build and maintain a motivated, stable and high-performing workforce,” Shantilal concluded.