Leading a team in 2025 feels like stepping into uncharted territory. The old playbook for people leadership has been ripped up and no one’s handed over a new one. Leaders are navigating a workforce that has never had so many opportunities – or faced such uncertainty. It’s no wonder the workplace is unsettled.
The turning point, of course, was Covid-19. Remote work cracked open a global conversation: what do I actually want from work? Millions of people found themselves reflecting on the thing they do five days a week. Was it meaningful? Was it sustainable? Could it be better?
That reflection fuelled a wave of job hopping. Workers experimented with new roles, sectors and working models. Post-pandemic opportunities were abundant and employees felt emboldened to make big changes.
But just a few years on, the UK is facing the opposite reality. The employment market has grown more hostile – for both sides. Employers are grappling with higher costs, including increases in National Insurance Contributions, which has squeezed their ability to create new opportunities or raise wages. For employees, the recruitment market is at its toughest in years, with fewer openings and stiffer competition for every role.
Employment Hero’s platform data captures this reversal. In 2024, we saw relative stability leading up to the Budget, followed by a sharp downturn. December, once a peak season for hiring, instead recorded a -0.9% month-on-month decline in employment. The first half of 2025 has brought some recovery, but we’re still far below last year’s levels.
At the same time, workers are contending with persistently high living costs. Housing, food and everyday essentials have eaten up larger portions of household income, leaving many employees struggling to keep up. This cocktail of pressures has pushed us into two defining trends for 2025: poly-employment and job hugging.
Poly-employment: security through multiple roles
Our inaugural Annual Jobs Report 2025: Work in Motion – analysed thousands of data points from UK businesses and employees and found that 20% of UK workers now hold more than one job, including 17% of full-time employees.
Gen Z leads the way: 42% of them juggle multiple jobs, reflecting both ambition and economic necessity. But this is not just a young person’s phenomenon. Nearly a quarter (24%) of over-55s are also taking on second roles, while 29% of employees are working extra hours in their main job to make ends meet.
The rise of side hustles can be viewed in two ways. For some, it’s entrepreneurial ambition – an effort to diversify income or pursue passion projects. For others, it’s a matter of survival. Stagnant wages against a backdrop of rising costs mean additional work has become a lifeline.
For businesses, though, the impact is complicated. Employees with divided focus may bring fresh skills and resilience, but they may also be stretched thin. Burnout, reduced productivity and higher attrition risk all follow when people are spread too widely.
Job hugging: the retreat to safety
The other big shift is job hugging. Faced with uncertainty, workers are clinging to the stability of their current employer. Research shows that 55% of UK employees now prioritise job security above career ambition and 51% say they have no plans to leave their current role.
In many ways, this is the natural flip side of the job hopping trend. After years of flux, people are tired of risk. They want steady pay cheques and reliable employers more than big leaps or bold experiments.
For HR leaders, job hugging comes with its own challenges. On the surface, retention may look positive. But a workforce that is risk-averse and fearful of change can stagnate. Without clear pathways for progression or opportunities to grow, engagement levels risk falling.
What HR can do
No HR team can fix the macroeconomic headwinds alone. Small businesses, in particular, are already fighting hard to balance rising costs with their ambitions to grow and hire. Simply raising salaries is not a realistic blanket solution.
The good news is there are steps people leaders can take to support employees.
Acknowledge the pressure
Times are tough and for a lot of people, side hustles are about making ends meet. But for those diving into poly-employment out of boredom or in pursuit of extra income, the likely result is burnout, stress and stalled personal growth. The question for employers isn’t whether these second jobs exist – they do – it’s what you can do to make people feel they don’t need them. Fair pay, flexibility and clear and clear pathways for development all help.
Upskill to keep them engaged
Job hugging is real – employees are staying put because they value security. But staying doesn’t automatically mean they’re engaged or developing. Offering training or mentoring keeps skills fresh, signals growth opportunities and stops retention from turning into stagnation.
Offer steadiness where you can
Pay rises aren’t always possible, but stability comes in other forms too: a clear mission, consistency in how you run things, clear communication. When the outside world feels shaky, those details really matter.
Make remote work count
Flexibility is still one of the top things employees want and when it works, it works. If your business has the ability to work remotely, it can be a real advantage. Employment Hero has grown to more than 1,700 people across four countries and multiple timezones. A few years ago, most people would’ve said that was impossible. Now it’s proof that remote work can scale.
A moment of opportunity
The UK labour market is in flux, and likely will be for some time. Poly-employment and job hugging are two sides of the same coin: responses to insecurity. Workers are trying to regain control in whatever ways they can.
For HR leaders, that makes this both a challenging and a defining moment. We don’t need to copy the old approaches to management. We have the chance to experiment, adapt and build workplaces that acknowledge the reality of employees’ lives.
It won’t be solved with knee-jerk reactions or quick fixes. But with careful listening, thoughtful design and a focus on stability, businesses can chart a path through the uncertainty.
Employees want security and growth. Employers want productivity and loyalty. Somewhere in the middle lies a new playbook for work in 2025 – and we have the chance to shape it.
Leading a team in 2025 feels like stepping into uncharted territory. The old playbook for people leadership has been ripped up and no one's handed over a new one. Leaders are navigating a workforce that has never had so many opportunities - or faced such uncertainty. It’s no wonder the workplace is unsettled.
The turning point, of course, was Covid-19. Remote work cracked open a global conversation: what do I actually want from work? Millions of people found themselves reflecting on the thing they do five days a week. Was it meaningful? Was it sustainable? Could it be better?
That reflection fuelled a wave of job hopping. Workers experimented with new roles, sectors and working models. Post-pandemic opportunities were abundant and employees felt emboldened to make big changes.
