Job security top reason to join; salary main retention driver

The top reasons for joining and staying in an organisation are salary, career advancement opportunities and job security, says a study by global professional services company Towers Watson.

The study titled ‘Global Workforce Study 2014’ said as high as 42 per cent highly engaged employees in India could potentially leave their job in next two years which is higher than the global average of 26 per cent.

"The findings very clearly indicate that engagement does not always imply loyalty. This is proof of the role that the employee value proposition can play as an effective tool in creating the right balance between employee preferences and employer needs," Towers Watson India Director Talent Management and Organisational Alignment Shatrunjay Krishna said.

Globally, the top drivers of attraction and retention remain the same, indicating that Indian employees have similar preferences as their global counterparts when choosing employers.

Job security remains the number one reason that attracts employees in India, while salary is the number one driver to retain them, followed by career advancement opportunities.

Indian employees also cite the length of commute from their home to their workplace as the third most important retention driver.

It further said that almost half of the Indian employees view excessive workload as the key source of stress, followed by inadequate staffing and unclear job expectations. Poor team working environment is also an important source of stress for Indian employees.

"India is a highly diverse talent market and hence it becomes pivotal for companies to have a well-defined and articulate EVP.

"It is equally important for organisations to appreciate the differing drivers of engagement and retention, and in doing so assess and address succession risk, especially among critical talent," Sinha added.