Beyond the 2% Drop: Addressing a Hidden Cause of Employee Disengagement

By: Cynthia Iorio, CEO Monarque Solutions

Employee Engagement Is Declining—Now What?

You just received the results of your latest employee engagement survey.

They show what Gallup’s 2024 State of the Global Workplace Report confirms: employee engagement has declined by 2% globally this year.

Now you’re expected to explain it to your colleagues in a boardroom—or on Zoom—as they stare back, waiting for your plan to fix it.

It’s Not Your Fault. But It Is Your Problem.

It’s not your fault employees seem less loyal. It's not your fault that the workforce demands more and appears to give less. It's not your fault the world shut down, leaving managers and employees alike struggling to maintain team cohesion in hybrid workplaces with weakened cultures.

But it is your responsibility to respond.

Because retention, performance, and productivity are on the line.

Why Traditional Engagement Solutions Are Falling Short

You can try all the classic moves:

• Bonuses or incentives

• Team-building events

• Town halls and Q&As

• Culture campaigns

But if you don’t address the real driver of disengagement for a significant portion of your

people, you’re treating symptoms instead of the cause.

A Third of Employees Are Disengaging for the Same Reason

There is one often-overlooked cause of employee disengagement that is impacting organizations everywhere.

Up to 1 in 3 employees is caring for someone outside of work.

They’re navigating:

• Medical crises

• Aging parents

• Disabled partners or children

• Unreliable support systems

All while trying to deliver their best work.

This hidden load is crushing even your most motivated employees—and pulling down your engagement scores along with them.

Engagement Isn’t About Getting More for Less. It’s About Meeting People Where They Are.

The good news?

This is solvable.

Supporting these employees doesn’t just reduce burnout. It fosters loyalty. It drives discretionary effort. It inspires organic leadership at the working level and delivers bottom-line results at the top.

Imagine engagement strategies that don’t just push people harder but actually remove the barriers holding them back.