Israelis are proud of their work, but not of their pay

The Great Resignation plague, a side effect in the labor market of the Covid-19 plague, is a challenge for employers. While workers are resetting their careers, which enterprise will absorb the significance of the shake-up, and succeed not only in recruiting talented people but also in keeping its employees? Which employer will accede to the new demands for flexibility and hybrid working? For the first time, "Globes", in collaboration with international market and consumer data company Statista, a world leader in market research, has undertaken an extensive survey covering 7,500 workers, who recommended the 150 best employers in Israel.

The listing is based on opinions provided by the respondents on 1,800 companies employing over 200,000 people in various sectors of the economy (see the separate article on the survey methodology).

Since it is almost impossible to compare working conditions across such varied industries, we present the rankings according to the companies' categories of business. In the high-tech sector, the top places are taken by the "immediate suspects", successful international companies with rich resources: Google is first among Internet and e-commerce companies, Microsoft leads the list of computing and software companies, and Intel is top company in semiconductors and electronics. Veteran, and profitable, Israeli company Check Point is ranked first among cybersecurity companies. The further it gets from the high-tech industry, the more surprises the survey produces - companies that been through upsets in management and through crises, such as Migdal and Arkia, head the tables. A breakdown of the survey participants, and analysis of the answers to the questions put to them alongside the request for their opinions of their employers, sheds light on the results and on the current mood in the labor market.

Managers have a better time

In the breakdown of the survey participants by job level, 20.5% are in managerial or supervisory positions, and 40.4% are in positions in which there is a degree of flexibility in how the work is done and in working hours, and in which the tasks are relatively complex. 34% of the respondents have little flexibility and are engaged in repetitive tasks, while 5% are apprentices, students or interns. In other words, most of the respondents enjoy some degree of autonomy in their work, and these are also the ones who, on average, awarded the highest scores to the employers. The highest average score was given by managers (7.69), followed by workers who stated that they had some flexibility in their work (7.55). The employees who said that they had little flexibility and that their tasks were repetitive gave the lowest average score (6.86).

Not only managers, but also older workers tended to award higher scores to their employers. The lowest average score was given by workers under twenty (6.72), and the highest by workers in the 40-49 age group (7.4). Immediately after them come those aged 50-59 (7.38). Among workers aged 60 and over, the score starts to decline: the average score they gave was 7.34.

Half remain for more than five years

One of the most talked about phenomena in the labor market in the past decade is the "jumping" tendency: people in generations Y and Z who do not stay with the same employer for long periods as was customary in the past, and switch jobs frequently. The crisis of 2008 only strengthened this trend, as the understanding grew that it was not always worth trusting the employer to look after his employees in difficult times, and now, in a market with a shortage of workers and employers fighting over every talent, the absence of long-term commitment certainly makes the fight harder. This phenomenon also raises questions about how worthwhile it is for employers to invest in training, and about the right recruitment and preservation strategies.

The survey participants were not asked how often they changed jobs, but a breakdown of their length of service in the companies in which they work reveals a not inconsiderable group employed in the same place of work for more than five years. 19.5% of the respondents said they had been working at the same employer for five to ten years, and 28.2% said they had been with the same employer for ten years or more.

Manufacturing companies score higher

Alongside the ranking in categories, the survey breaks down the scores given by employees by broader sectors, divided between commerce, manufacturing, public services and private services.

Analysis of the results shows that the highest average score (7.4) was given to employers in the manufacturing sector, bringing together companies that make physical products.

This sector consists includes among other businesses semiconductor, electronics, biotechnology, drugs, and industrial products companies.

Slightly behind it, with an average score of 7.38, comes the private services sector, covering companies providing services in cybersecurity, data, accounting, law, and finance.

The commercial sector receives an average score of 7.28, while last comes the public services sector, with an average score of 7.07.

Proud of the product, not of the pay

In order to obtain a broader picture of the way in which workers perceive employers in the Israeli labor market, the 7,500 survey participants were asked to grade how far they agreed with various statements, on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 = don't agree at all; 5 = very much agree).

Analysis of the results shows that the statements winning the most 4 or 5 grades "I can organize my work myself," "I'm proud of the product/service of the company where I work," "Men and women have the same opportunities of promotion," "I'm given the information I need to carry out my job," and "My colleagues work well together."

The statements that received fewer scores of 4 and 5 mainly related to pay and promotion opportunities, for both men and women: "The company pays a good salary," "The salary matches the degree of responsibility," "There are opportunities to advance in one's career," and also "The managers are loyal to the workers."

To sum it up crudely, workers feel that they have the tools to carry out their jobs, and on the whole are proud of their work, but the conditions and the trust in management could do with improvement.

Methodology 

How the rankings were calculated and what the participants were asked

The Israel 2022 Survey of Best Employers is based on extensive research analyzing the attractiveness of the various employers. The survey took into account the opinions of thousands of employees and was based on the scores awarded to each employer. The 150 employers who received the highest scores make up the list of leading employers for 2022.

Who conducted the survey?

The survey was conducted by international data company Statista, one of the world's leading platforms for analyzing market strategy, statistics, and providing research findings. Statista.com is a major portal providing access to data, insights and trends on more than 80,000 topics and 170 industries. The portal contains proprietary surveys, exclusive secondary sources, and data from more than 22,500 sources.

Statista, which is headquartered in Germany and was founded in 2007, has more than 1,000 employees in 12 cities worldwide. Statista's Research & Analysis Department conducts analyses and research for its customers. Statista's customers include multinational corporations, more than 2,000 universities and technical schools, leading consultancy and management companies, advertising agencies, trade organizations, banks and financial institutions, political NGOs, and many others. Partners to its project in the media and communications include "The Financial Times", "Forbes", "The Independent", "El Mundo", "Frankfurter Allgemeine", "Business Insider", and LinkedIn.

What was the methodology?

Statista conducted preliminary research to form a list of 1,800 employers eligible to take part in the ranking, by having more than 200 employees in Israel. The company then conducted an anonymous survey through three online panels, frequently using tools from consumer research among the specific target groups. In these panels, the registered participants were asked to respond to the survey's questions according to their socio-demographic profile.

For the purpose of the Israel's Best Employers research, the participants were selected from a range of socio-demographic backgrounds so that they formed a representative sample of employees in part time and full time jobs at the largest companies. In practice, 6,000 respondents took part in the three panels. During the period of the survey (July 5 to August 15, 2021) "Globes" readers were also invited to take part and fill out the survey, which was available on the globes.co.il website. More than 1,500 people completed the survey through the website, so that, in total, 7,500 employees took part in the survey.

Why was the 200 employees threshold set?

According to Statista's experience around the world, this is the minimum size at which a company can allow itself to build a significant human resources department that handles procedures for complex hiring needs and nurturing employees and the work environment. In countries with larger populations and economies, the entry threshold is set at 300-500 employees.

How was the ranking determined?

In the survey, employees were asked to rate their readiness to recommend their employer (hereafter: direct recommendations) to friends and family. The responses were analyzed on a scale of 0 to 10: from 0 - "I wouldn't recommend my employer at all" - to 10, meaning "I would absolutely recommend my employer."

Employees were also asked about their readiness to recommend other employers in the sector in which they work (hereafter: indirect recommendations). Respondents were presented with a list of these employers, which were categorized in advance by Statista into 25 different industries, and the respondents were asked to give their opinion about which of them stood out either positively or negatively (the options were: "I recommend," "I don't recommend," "No opinion").

On the basis of the assessments of the respondents, the employers received an overall score, which was calculated from the direct and indirect recommendations. Finally, the employers were ranked according to their overall scores. Scores could theoretically reach a high of 10 and a low of 0.

Why were 150 companies out of 1,800 chosen?

That is the way that Statista starts out in a country in which it hasn't operated in the past. In Ireland, 150 companies are ranked, and in the US the listings are according to states, and the number of companies ranked ranges between dozens to 100 companies in each state.

Why is the ranking by industry?

The division by industry is especially important in the recommendation process. After all, conditions are not equal in each different industry - but that is not a reason for employees of companies that aren't rich in resources to think that their employers are not worthy of appreciation compared with other employers in the same industry. This is also one of the reasons that the number of companies in each different industry in the list of 150 companies is not equal. The participants in the panels ranked each company in relation to the industry in which it operates. Entry into the list of 150 companies is only according to this score - and this means that there are industries with small representation and those with large representation.

Was additional information gathered on the recommendations?

For additional analyses, the respondents were asked to express their opinions on about 25 statements relating to the work environment. They were asked to rank their employer on various aspects (from salary and the work-private life balance, through to development potential and promotion prospects); the work environment (colleagues, hierarchical structure of the company, technical equipment); and the reputation of the employer (image and growth of the company). The extent of agreement/disagreement with these statements was measured on a scale of 0 to 5. This process was not taken into account in the scoring; its entire aim was to form a deeper understanding of Israel's labor market. These attributes are presented separately in the findings.

Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on November 25, 2021.

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