Just 14% of employees in Singapore were engaged in 2025, a stark indicator of a global crisis in worker satisfaction driven by managerial shortcomings. Global employee engagement fell to 20% in 2025, reaching its lowest level since 2020, according to Gallup. Worker engagement plummeted to a decade low, impacting productivity and talent retention.

Employee engagement is critical for business success, but the very managers tasked with fostering it are themselves disengaged and rated poorly. The disengagement and poor ratings of managers create a challenging environment for organizations.

Based on the widespread decline in engagement and the direct link to managerial effectiveness, companies that fail to address their leadership shortcomings will likely face sustained productivity losses and increased talent drain.

  • Global employee engagement dropped to 20% in 2025, marking its lowest point since 2020, according to Gallup.
  • Just 14% of employees in Singapore were engaged in 2025, as reported by Human Resources Director.
  • Employees under 35 in Singapore reported an engagement rate of only 10%, according to Human Resources Director.
  • Only 11% of German workers are engaged at work, while 49% maintain strong life satisfaction, states HR Executive.
  • Manager engagement declined by nine points globally since 2022, according to Gallup.

Why is worker engagement low in 2026?

Manager engagement declined by nine points globally since 2022, according to Gallup. The nine-point drop in manager engagement globally since 2022 indicates that the very individuals meant to inspire are themselves disengaged. Companies face a leadership crisis where the cascading effect of disengaged managers threatens organizational productivity.

In Singapore, leaders rated their organizations' manager effectiveness at just 3.32 out of 5, as reported by Human Resources Director. The low self-assessment of 3.32 out of 5 for manager effectiveness directly correlates with abysmal employee engagement rates. Only 10% of Singaporean employees under 35 are engaged, indicating current managerial approaches fail to connect with the next generation of workers.