Singaporeans are not only emotionless but unhappiest in the world

Singapore’s residents work 46.6 hours a week — the longest hours in the world

Singaporeans have done it once again — we are labelled as the unhappiest workers in the world…

A new study has found that nearly one in two employees are unhappy at their current workplaces, and an overwhelming majority (82%) will not recommend their company to a friend!

Now bear in mind, this study is hardly the first to highlight Singaporeans dissatisfaction, but it gives us an idea about why and how to manage employees expectations.

Based on calls and in-person interviews with 1,000 adults in 148 countries, Gallup researchers found that Singaporeans were the least likely to report positive emotions. They didn’t think they were treated with respect, didn’t report laughing or smiling, said they had trouble getting rest, and said they didn’t get much enjoyment out of their day.

Which country had the happiest citizens? Panama.

In fact, the top of the list is populated entirely with Latin American countries.

Singapore is known for its stable economy, world-class infrastructure, excellent education, housing and healthcare systems that many countries envy.

Yet, why can’t Singaporeans be happy?

We spend decades of our life toiling for the banks who are the real owners of our home…

Banks are also the first ones to get paid when we receive our salaries each month.

We worry about interest rate hikes and the rising unemployment rate. We also have to plan for retirement and cash out from our homes when we grow old.

Along the way, we fear and worry that something might go wrong. We see people around us facing difficulties in life and we are afraid that we might be the next one — unemployed, massive investment losses, terminal illnesses, etc.

But there’s good news: when employees were asked about their experience in the past six months, they were more concerned about getting support for their well-being rather than their performance in the workplace.

Of all the countries surveyed by Employment Hero, Singaporeans showed a high level of concern for their mental health, with more than half (52%) rating it over career satisfaction (35%).

Unfortunately, employers are failing to meet their workers’ mental health needs. The study found a clear mismatch between what is currently offered by companies and the employees’ desired level of support.

While 68% of employers said they were monitoring and supporting employee’s mental health, less than half (41%) of workers agreed with the statement.

Also, while 62% of employers said they have tools in place to measure the organisation’s mental health, merely one in three (39%) workers agreed.

To better meet their needs, employees said they would prefer to see the following initiatives:

• Counselling services (43%)
• More health and wellness benefits (58%)
• Efforts on maintaining a healthy work-life balance (69%)

“Lack of clear structures, workflows and open communications across the organisation is adding unnecessary stress and strain on employees that are already struggling to cope with general pandemic-related anxiety,” Thompson — CEO and co-founder at Employment Hero said.

Jon Clifton, a Gallup partner in Washington, felt that Singaporeans sacrifice economic success and stability for what truly matters.

“If you measure Singapore by the traditional indicators, they look like one of the best-run countries in the world,” he was quoted as saying. “But if you look at everything that makes life worth living, they’re not doing so well.”

While remote working still very much a necessity during this pandemic, and possibly the future, employers must take action and put the right guidelines and communication channels in place to ensure their employees’ well-being.

What do you think? Let’s discuss in the comments!