How do you really feel about work? If you’re anything like the majority of UK workers, you probably feel that work is something you do simply because you have to, and you might feel that other aspects of your life are far more important.

According to the World Values Survey (WVS), an international study that looked at attitudes to work across 24 countries, Brits are the least likely to claim their work was “important in their life” and also the least likely to claim that “work should always come first”.

The survey shows how Brits’ attitudes to work have both shifted and remained the same over the decades. The major takeaway from the study is that Brits are, more than ever, less enamoured by extreme work cultures. 

So, why have we fallen out of love with work? We spoke to Laura Cloke, a career fulfilment coach, and Dr Kirstie Hewlett, a research fellow at the Policy Institute who worked on the survey, to find out why our attitudes to work are changing. 

What does the World Values Survey tell us about the UK’s attitude to work?

The WVS has been surveying 24 countries since the 90s to find out how different generations in each country perceive the importance of work. The latest data shows that, on the whole, the UK is one of the least likely countries to cite work as being important above all else. 

However, this is nothing new. “The share of the British public who say work is important in their life has hardly changed in three decades,” states the survey.

One of the most significant changes has been a generational one. Specifically, millennials have, over time, become much less likely to agree with the view that work should come first. “In 2009, 41% felt this way; by 2022, this had fallen to 14%,” cites the study. 

While Gen X and Gen Z are also less likely to prioritise work, almost half of the respondents from the pre-war generation cite work as the most important thing in their life.

In other words, the statistics suggest that young people’s attitudes to work are shifting, with younger generations now more likely than ever to deprioritise work.

Are we really falling out of love with work or are we simply finding balance?

While many may interpret the study as an example of young people losing interest in work, as Cloke explains, the survey suggests that people are simply more wary of toxic workplace cultures. “I don’t think it’s quite that people are losing their passion for work; it’s more that they don’t see work as the most important thing in their life,” she says. “The clients I support enjoy their jobs but they don’t want them to dominate their lives. They are looking for good boundaries so that they can switch off from work.”

In fact, according to Cloke, the changing attitudes to work are a sign of healthy balance. “In some ways, this report shows a positive shift, and with workplace stress and burnout on the rise, this might be no bad thing.”

According to Hewlett, the research can be misinterpreted as a sign of laziness in Britain, but like Cloke, she believes that deprioritising work has its benefits.

“It’s possible there are economic benefits to a workforce that has a greater focus on getting the work-life balance right,” adds Hewlett. “There’s a risk of drawing a simple but wrong conclusion from this research that ‘lazy Brits’ are damaging productivity, but the fact that some see work as less important doesn’t imply they don’t work hard – just that they have different priorities, which may be beneficial for their mental and physical health as well as their personal relationships and other things they see as important in their lives.”

Why the UK fell out of love with the ‘work-first’ attitude

As millennials and other younger generations are showing less and less interest in prioritising work above all else, we looked at why that might be.

Work itself is changing

According to Cloke, people are developing more flexible attitudes to their careers.

“The world of work has changed, you no longer have one job for life with a final salary pension, so people are more willing to try different things,” she says.

Work no longer guarantees a secure future

The cost of living crisis and economic instability in the UK is also playing a part in young people’s hesitancy to cite work as being of utmost importance.

“It is no longer the case that if you work hard you will get a well-paying job that allows you to get a mortgage and save for your retirement,” she says. “That was a big driver for people in the past, and if those options are taken away, I think people want to enjoy and live their life now rather than waiting for a blissful retirement that will likely never come.”

Hewlett agrees that the economic landscape plays a big role. “Economic factors, such as long-term economic and wage stagnation, are almost certainly a core part of the story,” she says. “Despite working hard, many young people are simply unable to get on the housing ladder or achieve other milestones that marked older generations’ transition into adulthood. If work can’t deliver the expected rewards, then it’s inevitable that some will question whether it really should be treated as the be-all and end-all of life.”

The pandemic has changed things, too

Attitudes have also undergone a big shift thanks to the pandemic and its impact on how we relate to our jobs and our employers. Cloke believes we’ve become much more clear-sighted.

“I think there has also been a shift with how people see their employers, which was kickstarted with the pandemic,” she says. “Lots of employers were great to their staff but we are now seeing a real disconnect between how people are valued.” 

She adds, “I think employers have taken for granted that people will always work longer hours, staying late, going over and above but more and more people are realising that it doesn’t benefit them. The pandemic caused us to reflect on what we want from life and being stuck at work isn’t it.”

People in the UK often have the freedom to prioritise things other than work

An important thing to note is that people in the UK are often in a position where they don’t have to prioritise work above all else.

“A key part of this shift in attitudes towards work is about changing values within society overall: economic security is more highly prized in developing countries, while values of self-expression and doing things that you want to do become more important in economically developed societies, because people’s basic material needs have already been met,” Hewlett says. “So an important element of being less work-oriented is about economic development and about the freedom those in richer nations have to pursue other goals.” 

People may realise the benefits of placing less importance on work

Ultimately, the survey doesn’t indicate that we’ve lost interest in work, but rather, that we’ve committed to taking a healthier approach to how we work.

In fact, according to Cloke, placing too much emphasis on the importance of work can even hinder us, both personally and professionally.

“People who have good boundaries with work and take time off to live their lives tend to be happier and more fulfilled, and these people are therefore more likely to be productive at work,” she says. “Being unfulfilled at work can make you up to 30% less productive so being happy with your work-life balance is really important.”

If this survey is an indication of the future of work in the UK, it seems that we’re going to remain one of the least likely countries to claim work is the most important part of life – and honestly, that’s probably a good thing!

Images: Getty