The 2026 Employee Exodus: What’s coming, and how to keep people from going

Resignations at the ready

Our recent Perkonomics Report: The Challenge of Employee Value, based on feedback from 4,000 employees and 1,000 employers, reveals that 34% of people are already considering leaving their job in 2026. Not exactly a shocker for the season of fresh starts.

But feeling undervalued is like ammo for that restlessness, turning a passing thought into a plan. 54% of employees are ready to find something new next year, making the link between feeling unseen and moving on pretty hard to ignore. 

And like we said, employers aren’t in the dark about this. More than half admit they expect undervalued staff to walk in the next 12 months, which means they can see the problem. They just don’t know what to do about it.

So, if undervaluing people is what’s making or breaking retention, then the real question is this: how do we make people feel valued enough to stay?

Before we tackle that, let’s figure out why they’re feeling the way they are. 

Mind the value gap

Our research found three things at the heart of it: recognition, purpose, and wellbeing.

Over half of employees say their employer isn’t doing enough to make them feel valued. And just like that, the value gap reveals itself – Scooby-Doo villain style. It’s the space between how valued people feel and how valued leaders think they are. Employers rate it at 7.4 out of 10, while employees put it closer to 6.75.

It might be a small gap, but it’s enough to get under people’s skin – and into their heads about leaving. 

Morale has left the chat

60% of employees told us that feeling undervalued damaged their mental wellbeing, causing stress and low self-esteem.

And it never stops with a single person. Once a disgruntled employee decides to move on, others start to wonder if they should too – and those who stay end up juggling the extra work and pressure that comes with it. 

Presenteeism, absenteeism… call it what you want. But if people are just hanging in there until something better comes along, you’ve probably lost them already. 

The simple stuff that makes people stay

The term “looming employee exodus” sounds dramatic – very dun-dun-dun – but the fix is far less theatrical. It comes down to closing the value gap before it widens any further. Bridging it takes intention, and most employers already have what they need to start. As for the bits they don’t, well, that’s where we come in. 

Recognition is the place to begin. It’s the top thing employees say makes them feel valued, yet only 30% of organisations have it built into their culture in any real way. 

Work-life balance is just as important. It came out as the top benefit influencing whether someone stays or leaves, which makes sense when you think about how much time we spend working. 

Financial wellbeing follows close behind. When there’s no real support for money worries, that stress can affect how people work. Giving them access to resources and education, and ways to save or make their money go further, can take away some of that daily pressure and help them feel more in control.

Then there’s the benefits package itself. 79% of employees told us that having benefits that are relevant and genuinely useful would make them feel more valued. What’s that saying, “quality over quantity”?

And finally, mental wellbeing. Protecting it means creating a place where people don’t feel like they have to keep ploughing on when things get tough. That only happens when leaders notice when someone’s not themselves, and the culture treats mental health like a normal part of work, not something to tiptoe around.

Staying put never looked so good

Now, even though plenty of people start thinking about moving on come January, it’s not all doom, gloom, and taking calls from recruiters in the toilet. 

71% of employees told us they feel like they belong in their role, which means the foundations for closing that pesky perception gap are already there. And lucky for you, we can help make that nice and simple.  

Perkbox brings wellbeing, benefits, and engagement together in one app employees love using. It helps organisations with all kinds of workforces care for, connect with, and celebrate their people, so everyone feels valued.

Because while “new year, new job” might be the cliché, we think “new year, still happy here” has a much better ring to it. 

If you want to dig into more insights from our Perkonomics Report: The Challenge of Employee Value, you can read the whole thing here.