38% of UK workers plan to change jobs in 2026 finds New Possible survey

Stockport-based people insight platform, New Possible, has published the fifth edition of its What Workers Want survey, which reveals strong demand for flexibility among UK workers.

The survey captured the hopes, fears, and priorities for 2026 from over 2,000 UK employees. The research found that 38% of workers say they’re likely to seek a new role within the next year, with flexible working the strongest predictor of retention – 51% of employees without flexible options are likely to look elsewhere.

The research also highlights an AI enablement gap: 39% of employees use AI daily or weekly, yet only a third of employers encourage its use and just 24% provide training or guidance. AI adoption is highest in marketing (78%), technology (69%), and finance (57%).

Average pay expectations remain high at +6.9% in 2026 (vs. +7.3% in 2025) but show early signs of softening.

Nate Harwood, founder of New Possible, said:

“As AI increasingly challenges what it means to contribute as a human, people are looking for greater freedom, purpose and enjoyment in their work, as well as leaders who can rise to that challenge.”

Job satisfaction remains steady at 70%. Energy and utilities (77%) leads the satisfaction rankings, followed by creative arts (75%) and law (75%). At the other end, retail (65%) and hospitality (63%) record the lowest satisfaction, with discontent centred on work-life balance, pay and leadership.

Top five reasons to stay:

1. Flexibility
2. Colleague relationships
3. Fulfilment
4. Autonomy
5. Healthy culture

Top five reasons for leaving:

1. Poor leadership
2. Pay dissatisfaction
3. Lack of resources (incl. staffing)
4. Unhealthy culture
5. Poor work-life balance

On culture, companies described as ‘considerate’, ‘trusting’ and ‘generous’ tend to have the most loyal employees, while those seen as ‘uncaring’, ‘corporate’ or ‘selfish’ are linked to a higher likelihood of leaving.

Wellbeing remains under significant strain, with 26% of respondents reporting a decline in 2025 compared with 15% who noted an improvement. Media workers were most likely to report worsening wellbeing (45%), followed by those in science and pharmaceuticals (40%), engineering and manufacturing (33%), and healthcare (32%).

The survey also found that 14% of employees believe their job is at risk of redundancy. Anxiety is highest in technology, where 32% feel at risk, followed by media (25%) and science and pharmaceuticals (25%). Higher AI usage is modestly linked to greater feelings of job insecurity.

53% of employees aged 18-34 say they’re likely to look for a new job in the next 12 months, with pay cited as the dominant reason. Flexibility, colleague relationships and benefits are the strongest factors keeping younger workers in post. As workers age, priorities shift: leadership quality and flexibility gain even more importance, while the oldest cohort (65+) places the greatest value on simply enjoying their work.

2,029 UK employees responded to the survey. Full findings from What Workers Want are available on the New Possible website.