Career Change Statistics
Up-to-date statistics on career change, fulfilment, and the future of work.
Stats on wanting greater work flexibility
84% of US workers planning a career change want more flexibility. - 30 Nov 2019, Indeed
Over nine in ten UK workers are not working the usual nine to five week. 42% already work flexibly in some form or another, e.g. job sharing or compressed hours. - 24 Aug 2019, YouGov
The top reasons employees seek flexible work are due to work-life balance (75%), family (45%), time savings (42%) and commute stress (41%). - 13 Aug 2019, FlexJobs
Flexible work appeals most to pet owners (28%), freelancers (25%), entrepreneurs (20%) and introverts (20%). - 13 Aug 2019, FlexJobs
44% of job seekers said a job with flexibility would have a “huge improvement” on their overall quality of life, and 53% said it would have a “positive impact.” 78% of people said having a flexible job would allow them to be healthier (eat better, exercise more, etc.), and 86% said they’d be less stressed. - 13 Aug 2019, FlexJobs
78% of UK workers report positive quality of life benefits from flexible working. - 1 Jun 2019, CIPD
90% of US employees say allowing for more flexible work arrangements and schedules will increase employee morale. 64% work remotely for some of the time. - 1 Oct 2018, Staples
South American's are 67% more likely than average to always work remotely. - 1 Sep 2018, OWL Labs
Men across the globe are 8% more likely than women to work remotely. - 1 Sep 2018, OWL Labs
Globally, the majority of companies don’t allow remote work. 44% work for companies that don't allow remote work, but 16% work for companies that are fully remote. - 1 Sep 2018, OWL Labs
52% of global employees work from home at least once a week. Additionally, 68% of employees work remotely at least once a month. - 1 Sep 2018, OWL Labs
Stats on a good workplace culture
Someone working for a company with open and effective management is 50% more likely to stay for three years. They're 34% more likely to stay where employees are empowered, compared to someone at a company seen as giving employees less influence and autonomy. - 20 Nov 2019, LinkedIn
74% of U.S. and U.K. employees say workplace culture is important to them, but only 40% reported having a positive work culture at their company. 58% would take a job with a competing company if the new company had a better culture. - 1 May 2019, Speakap
The most important attributes of a strong workplace culture are: respect and fairness (39%), trust and integrity (23%), and teamwork (9%). - 1 May 2019, Speakap
63% of US workers say business culture directly impacts an organization's success. The majority of U.S. workers believe culture influences much of their job performance – doing their best work (77%), their productivity and efficiency (76%) and their ability to best serve customers (74%). - 19 Mar 2019, Eagle Hill Consulting
Almost three-quarters of US workers said they'd be more likely to work for a company with a green footprint. - 15 Feb 2019, Swytch
63% of US employees wouldn't accept a job without first knowing that the organization is actively inclusive of women, minorities and people with disabilities. - 1 Oct 2018, Staples
71% of employees feel their manager is considerate of their wellbeing, compared to 63% of employers. - 1 Nov 2016, CIPD
Stats on financing a career change
58% of US career changers are willing to take a pay cut to switch careers. - 30 Oct 2019, Indeed
Stats on being happy or fulfilled at work
81% of workers planning to start a new career say it’s because they are unhappy in their current role. - 30 Oct 2019, Indeed
88% of career changers say they're happier since making their move. - 30 Oct 2019, Indeed
54% of UK workers are either ‘often’ or 'always' enthusiastic about their job. - 1 Jun 2019, CIPD
Two thirds of us are unfulfilled at work, which by extension means we’re unfulfilled in our lives. - 1 May 2019, Imperative
Employees with strong workplace social support networks find more meaning in work. Toxic workplace behaviors, such as bullying and exclusion, drive down meaningful work scores by 24%. - 7 Nov 2018, BetterUPLabs
Meaningful work drives employees to work more. Employees doing meaningful work put in an extra hour per week and take two fewer days of paid leave per year. Employees who find their work highly meaningful stay at jobs for an average of 7.4 months longer than employees who find work lacking meaning. - 7 Nov 2018, BetterUPLabs
Employees lack meaning at work. On average, employees say their work is about half as meaningful as it could be. - 7 Nov 2018, BetterUPLabs
Nine out of ten people are willing to earn less money to do more meaningful work. - 6 Nov 2018, Harvard Business Review
80% of people would rather have a boss who cared about them finding meaning and success in work, than receive a 20% pay increase. - 6 Nov 2018, Harvard Business Review
Globally, those who work remotely at least once a month are 24% more likely to feel happy and productive in their roles than those who don't or can't work remotely. - 1 Sep 2018, OWL Labs
84% of employees aren't fully engaged at work. - 1 Jul 2018, ADP Research Institute
47% pf employees feel pride working for companies where they can be themselves. 46% feel pride where they have the chance to engage in work that has a positive impact on society. 51% feel proud of their company where there is a good balance between work life balance and flexibility. - 26 Jun 2018, LinkedIn
29% of employees are most likely to say that work makes them feel cheerful most or all of the time. Only 9% say work makes them feel excited most or all of the time. - 1 Nov 2016, CIPD
23% of British people in employment regret their current choice of career. For younger workers this rises to 30% of 25 to 34-year-old's regretting their current career choice. - 18 Sep 2015, Independent / London School of Business and Finance
Only 49% of British workers say they’d be proud to tell someone about what they do for work, when meeting for the first time. - 12 Aug 2015, YouGov
37% of working British adults say their job isn't making a meaningful contribution to the world. - 12 Aug 2015, YouGov
33% of working British adults do not find their jobs personally fulfilling. - 12 Aug 2015, YouGov
Worldwide, 13% of employees are engaged at work. 24% are "actively disengaged," indicating they are unhappy and unproductive at work. - 8 Oct 2013, Gallop
49% of Australians don't think they are in the right career. - 1 Jan 2013, SEEK Learning
A survey of nearly 90,000 employees found that only 21% felt fully engaged at work and nearly 40% were disenchanted or disengaged. - 1 Jan 2007, Towers Perrin
Stats on people making a career change
Of 662 full-time U.S. workers surveyed, 49% have made a dramatic career shift and among those who haven’t, 65% say they’re either thinking about, or previously considered, switching. - 30 Oct 2019, Indeed
The average worker in Britain considers changing career ten times per year, and nearly 20% are currently thinking about retraining. - 1 Sep 2019, Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT)
Stats on why people make a career change
The top five reasons people change career are: being unhappy in previous job / sector (81%), wanting greater flexibility (79%), wanting to earn more money (79%), not feeling challenged or satisfied (78%), wanting more opportunities for advancement (77%). - 30 Oct 2019, Indeed
Stats on age of people making a career change
The average age of career changers in the US is 39. - 30 Oct 2019, Indeed
People below the age of 35 years are more likely to change jobs. From 2017 to 2018, 51% of 16-to-20-year-old job changers switched jobs from a part-time job to another part-time job. - 29 Apr 2019, ONS
42% of the over-45's plan to change careers in the next two years. - 10 May 2018, First Direct
86% percent of professionals in their 20's are interested in changing careers. 66% of workers in their 30's and 60% of those in their 40's are interested in changing careers. - 13 Jul 2017, University of Phoenix
46% of Australians will have experienced a career change by the time they reach 30. - 1 Jan 2013, SEEK Learning
By the time they reach retirement age, 42% of Australians will have had three or more different careers. - 1 Jan 2013, SEEK Learning
17% of Australians didn't find their true career calling until they were over 48. - 1 Jan 2013, SEEK Learning
Stats on what the blockers are to making a career change
30% of employees surveyed stated their biggest obstacle to making a change is family or financial commitments. 19%, stated lack of qualifications, 17% stated a lack of confidence, 19% have no idea how to switch careers and 14% are put off by the time it takes to re-train. - 27 Sep 2019, Jobrapido
81% of those interested in changing careers identify barriers to doing so. 29% percent said they can't afford to start over again; 24% don't know what new direction they would take, or lack adequate education or experience. - 13 Jul 2017, University of Phoenix
Almost half of those who want to shift careers are uncertain of what else they can do (49%) or where to start (47%). - 12 Jan 2017, Careershifters
70% of people are looking for personal support to help them to make a shift. - 12 Jan 2017, Careershifters
52% of people contemplating a career shift are holding back from pursuing fulfilling careers due to fear of the ‘unknown’, and 43% are afraid of failure. - 12 Jan 2017, Careershifters
Financial concerns hold back almost 7 in 10 would-be career-changers. - 12 Jan 2017, Careershifters
65% of Australians wanting to change career don't feel confident to do so. - 1 Jan 2013, SEEK Learning
Stats on number of people wanting a career change
Nearly two thirds (62%) of the UK workforce want to change their career path. - 27 Sep 2019, Jobrapido
40% of employees in the UK are planning to change careers in the next two years. - 10 May 2018, First Direct
58% of working adults are interested in changing careers. - 13 Jul 2017, University of Phoenix
47% of individuals want to change their careers. - 18 Sep 2015, London School of Business and Finance
21% of people are hoping to change career in the next 12 months, for salary prospects, better work-life balance, and improved job satisfaction. - 18 Sep 2015, London School of Business and Finance
Stats on number of jobs in a lifetime
The average number of jobs in a lifetime is 12 for individuals born in the latter years of 1957-64 between the ages 18 to 52. - 22 Aug 2019, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Stats on number of people planning to change jobs
32% of employees plan to change jobs this year. - 23 Jul 2019, Careerbuilder
58% of next gen workers are looking to change companies in 2019. - 31 Jan 2019, The Muse
31% of workers say they are likely to change jobs in the next year. - 7 Dec 2017, Careerbuilder
22% of Australians are planning a career change in the next 21 months. - 1 Jan 2013, SEEK Learning
Stats on wanting a better work life balance
24% of UK workers find it difficult to relax in their personal time because of their job and 26% report that work affects personal commitments. - 1 Jun 2019, CIPD
41% say they'd take a 10% pay cut for an organisation that cares more about their wellness. 78% of employees feel employers have a responsibility to keep them mentally and physically well. - 1 Oct 2018, Staples
51% of UK employees want more flexible work options. - 1 Jan 2017, Mercer
49% of UK employees want their employer to focus more on health and wellness. - 1 Jan 2017, Mercer
33% of employees say they come home from work exhausted, either often (24%) or always (9%). - 1 Nov 2016, CIPD
Stats on when people change jobs
On average, around 9% of people changed jobs each year between 2000 and 2018. - 29 Apr 2019, ONS
Random - Smiley stats
Employees have six office romances, 812 arguments at work and will brew 7,989 rounds of tea or coffee for themselves or their colleagues. - 2 Oct 2018, Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT)
Stats on how people make a career change
7 in 10 employees value skills training more than degrees. - 2 Jul 2014, Glassdoor
20% of Australians that have successfully changed career, have done so through further study. - 1 Jan 2013, SEEK Learning