European Poll Finds Brits Boast Loyalty to Bosses

Attitudes towards loyalties in the workplace have changed dramatically in recent years, with many employees regularly changing their roles and company to further progress their careers. Gone are the days where a job was considered ëfor lifeí. This new spirit suggests an increase in opportunities for todayís ambitious workforce, and highlights the growing need for employers to promote themselves as a great place to work for choosy employees. So who do workers align their loyalties with in the workplace in 2006? According to the results of a recent poll by Monster, Hungarians lead the way in terms of team spirit, while Austrian workers are most likely to look out for themselves at work.

The Monster Meter poll asked 24,932 European workers ìWho do you feel most loyal to at work?î The survey revealed:

10% (2560 votes) ìThe Bossî
19% (4729 votes) ìThe Companyî
32% (8043 votes) ìMy Teamî
6% (1544 votes) ìNo-oneî
33% (8056 votes) ìMyselfî

The poll revealed good news for team players, with 32% of workers across Europe expressing loyalty to their team. 33% of those polled feel loyal only to themselves, indicating a new breed of workers who are keen to work in the way that suits them best.

Bosses across Europe appear to get little in the way of loyalty from their employees, with only 7% and 5% of those polled in Germany and Luxembourg respectively citing they feel any kind of loyalty to their employers; in contrast as many as 21% of UK workers do feel loyal to their bosses.

ìWith so many new opportunities available, itís not surprising that many people feel that their loyalties should lie with themselvesî, comments Kai Deininger, Head of Marketing Communications, Monster Europe. ìItís really all about making the right career choices to suit your lifestyle, and by choosing an employer thatís exactly the right fit for you.î

Team spirit is particularly high amongst Belgians, with 39% polled revealing that they feel most loyal to their team. This was closely followed by Irish workers on 37%, the French and Spanish, with 36% each and the Swiss with 35%.

Perhaps surprisingly, many workers polled indicated that they feel loyalty only to themselves in the workplace, Austrian workers lead the way on 42%, followed by Polish and Luxembourgers on 39% each; Dutch workers on 35% and Irish workers on 34%.

ìAs an individualís lifestyle changes, so do their requirements for a perfect job, so itís symptomatic of an enterprising workforce to see that the majority of those polled were interested in their own needs, rather than those of their organisation.î concludes Deininger.

The results of the current Monster Meter are based on votes cast by Monster.com visitors from 2nd October to 5th November. Only one vote per user is counted toward the final tabulation. The Monster Meter, a product of Monster, the leading global online careers site and flagship brand of Monster Worldwide Inc., is a series of online polls that gauge users’ opinions on a variety of topics relating to careers, the economy and the workplace.