Amid treacherous job market, ‘job hugging’ is the new ‘job hopping’: report

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — Remember the post-pandemic job-hopping trend, when employees working from home had the pick of the litter in terms of employers trying to lure good talent? Well, it seems those days are well and truly over.

In the era of seemingly endless tech layoffs, fears over AI replacing people, and a wobbly economy, job hopping is out and “job hugging” is in, according to a new report.

What is job hugging? According to a report from consulting firm Korn Ferry, job hugging is a colloquial term for holding onto your job “for dear life.” More and more employees are displaying the behavior at an “alarming rate,” the report states.

Currently, most employees see the job market as “treacherous” and plan to stay in their jobs for at least the next six months, according to the Eagle Hill Retention Index, a resource cited in the report.

“Their sense of outside opportunities available to them has plummeted,” the report states, “and employees staying put is not necessarily good news.”

“Firms run the risk of becoming comfortable perches from which workers can jump when the time’s right,” said tech expert Matt Bohn with Korn Ferry.

Boom and bust cycles in the job market are nothing new. But the current sense of insecurity workers feel is the result of a confluence of various factors — each individually daunting enough to give workers pause.

The report cites “a sense of global events as unpredictable and unprecedented, combined with looming AI disruption” as making workers increasingly unsure. This can lead to them remaining in “holding patterns” the report goes on to say, “rather than developing their skills and career.”

This in turn, blocks up-and-coming and entry-level employees, who are reportedly already among the demographics most impacted by AI.

But while a lack of latitude in the job market could be bad news for employees, there’s a potential upside for companies. Without pressure to match outside salaries, there’s less pressure to raise wages, while less turnover means fewer recruitment and training costs.

And teammates not leaving their jobs every couple of years, as has become common, means companies can develop those talents and create more internal career path.

“The key to capitalizing on the stagnant job market is to implement strong programs for internal development and performance management,” said Dennis Deans with Korn Ferry. “It’s great to have a long-tenured workforce and build capacities within it.”