Just over one-third of workers in a recent Gallup Poll said that they were engaged, or highly enthusiastic about the workforce, while the remaining nearly two-thirds of workers surveyed were either not engaged or actively disengaged.
When employees are engaged, they adopt the vision, values, and purpose of the organization they work for. They become passionate contributors, innovating problem solvers, and stunning colleagues.
A disengaged employee is someone who usually doesn’t enjoy their work, and as a result, does the bare minimum, doesn’t put in extra effort, and is highly unlikely to be a company evangelist.
Actively disengaged employees are a real problem because they can cause significant damage to employee morale, bring down performance, stifle innovation, and adversely affect profitability.
A disengaged employee looks just like their engaged co-workers on the surface, but, unlike engaged employees, they bring neither passion nor commitment to their jobs. They often exhibit toxic behaviors, underperform, and lack a strong belief in or enthusiasm for the organization’s mission, vision, or values.
Here are a few signs of disengaged employees at your workplace
- Productivity and quality of work take a downturn
- Partial or complete withdrawal from the team
- Taking more breaks, vacations, or being late more often
- A habit of showing up late and leaving work early
- No appetite for challenge or taking on more responsibility
- Chronic absenteeism (4 or more sick days a month)
- General negative attitude towards work colleagues
- Doesn’t want to gain new knowledge or skills
- A sudden break from routine (i.e., suddenly unreliable)