Sometimes, it seems that the world is on fire – even, if not above all, at work, according to a new report which revealed that a toxic “triple threat” of pessimism, uncertainty and disconnection in the workplace reaches critical levels.
This, in turn, endangers the well-being of employees and undermines productivity, according to the report on the state of the workforce in 2025, the “system of resilience at work” of Mequilibre.
“Pessimism on the labor market represents a greater threat than complaining about its work around the water cooler – this directly undermines the productivity of the workplace and mental health,” said Brad Smith, director of sciences of the Meq. “We have found that employees with work -related pessimism are experiencing a reduction of more than 60% of productivity and a risk of depression of 128%.”
The report analyzes the results of 5,477 employees in various industries in order to provide usable information to create empathetic leadership, develop individual resilience skills and take advantage of “organizational citizenship behaviors to protect both well-being and commercial results in this difficult landscape”.
The problem of pessimism, uncertainty and disconnection
According to results, 67% of employees say they feel worse by thinking of the country’s state, 35% feel worse about their work situation, and 49% feel worse about their finances – with a majority, 52%, expecting the state of our country to worsen. Meanwhile, 27% expect their finances getting worse, while 24% expect their work situation to decrease.
Add uncertainty to the mixture, and this triples more than the rate to which employees have a pessimistic vision of work.
“The increase in stress related to uncertainty has more impact than feelings – its expensive societies: people who declare a high degree of stress linked to uncertainty also have much greater productivity disorders, which indicates that uncertainty can reduce the production of half,” said Smith. “In addition, nearly one in three employees who has experienced a high degree of stress related to uncertainty shows a high degree of professional exhaustion.”
Burnout, in turn, is part of the third problematic element – disconnect – which drains the mental and emotional energy of employees. Part of this is also a feeling of broken confidence when companies or managers do not meet expectations, which leads to weakened labor relationships. More than half of the employees (55%) have shown at least one symptom of disconnection – in particular younger employees (18-29), 62% of which say they are affected by disconnection. The most seriously affected reported a deficiency of 66% of productivity.
“Stress linked to uncertainty does not disappear – this is the new normal in the workplace,” said Dr. Smith. “What is alarming is how it erodes the confidence of the employees and lead to performance and commitment without being a lot by noting.”
Gen Z is the most pessimistic
In addition to being more disconnected, generation Z seems to be the most pessimistic, despite the remaining pessimism coherent in most demographic groups. The current state of pessimism for this group is significantly higher than for others in all measured categories:
- 71% of the ZERS generation expressed negative opinions on the country’s state, compared to 59% of older employees.
- 62% of generation Z declared dissatisfaction with regard to their financial situation, compared to 37% of older employees.
- 48% of generation Z – vs. 22% of older workers – were pessimistic about their work situation.
Interestingly, with regard to what is still to come, generation Z has hope, demonstrating levels of pessimism constantly lower than what the future has in store for us.
How companies can transform this negativity
The report calls for two “critical protection factors” which can retaliate against the triple threat:
- Empathic management: Managers who prioritize well-being for their team create positive effective effects, reducing the stress of uncertainty by 37% and disconnect rates from 78% to 40%, the analysis revealed.
- Individual resilience: Among the most resilient employees – in particular those who have the skills learning emotions and realistic optimism – only 6% show signs of extreme disconnection compared to 59% of the least resilient.
Conclusion: To reverse the threat of pessimism-ascented-disconnect, leaders should prioritize the development of empathic leadership at all levels, provide support for resilience and encourage the support of peers to strengthen corporate cultures.
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