“When you think about the economic prospects for yourself and your family, how do you think you and your family will be doing in five years’ time?”

This is the question Edelman posed to respondents—nearly 8,000 from about 1,000 employers—in the survey for its 2024 Trust Barometer Special Report: Trust at Work. The answers revealed an unexpected, highly polarizing and economic-driven “trust gap” that HR needs to immediately address, according to a workplace expert.

Impact of disparate economic optimism

The study found a nearly 40-point divide between executives (executive vice presidents and higher) and associates (non-manager and entry-level) on personal economic optimism.

While 78% of executives believe they will be better off financially in five years, only 39% of associates agreed. In addition, the percentage of associates who reported economic optimism fell by 10 points in the last five years.

Researchers suggested a link between economic optimism and trust in the employer: Executives are 2.5 times more likely than associates to trust their CEOs, whereas associates are more inclined to trust their co-workers over their CEOs.

“HR professionals and people teams must prioritize bridging the gap between executives and associates because, in addition to being less economically optimistic, associates generally feel left behind,” says Cydney Roach, global chair of Workplace Advisory at Edelman, the multinational public relations and marketing consultancy firm.

Associates are two times less likely than executives to exert discretionary effort, half as likely to report “very good” mental health and 3.5 times less likely to feel in control over introducing artificial intelligence in the workplace.

3 areas to focus on to drive up optimism, trust

As the economic optimism gap widens, Roach says, “employers are the ones who have the power to reduce it,” led by HR. People professionals, she notes, can focus leadership attention on empowering employees with opportunities for career advancement and mobility.

“That will help boost workers’ economic optimism and, thereby, trust,” she says. Specifically, she recommends HR concentrate on three aspects of the employee experience to boost economic optimism and trust in the employer:

1. Sustainable employment

The U.K. government recently defined sustainable employment as “supporting people to stay in work and advance.” In the U.S., the National Institutes of Health deemed the concept a public health issue.

“Clearly, it deserves our attention,” Roach says, noting that going beyond the basics—such as by offering fair pay, a safe workplace, continuous learning/development, ability to chart a career path and an inclusive workplace with a sense of belonging—is critical to employees’ sense of sustainable employment.

2. Agency

According to Roach, workers increasingly expect to have agency over their experience— whether it is how AI impacts work or how they contribute their bottom-up insights to meet top-down strategic planning. She says that HR can encourage employers to engender that sense of agency by communicating transparently, listening to diverse viewpoints and inviting employees to contribute to planning, particularly when it comes to large-scale workplace transformation, such as rolling out AI tools.

3. Impact

The majority of employees say they are more likely to work for a company if it publicly demonstrates a commitment to social issues, such as access to healthcare, gender equity, climate action and protecting LGBTQIA rights. “They want to feel they’re making a difference beyond the office walls,” Roach says.

When leaders strategically help boost employees’ economic optimism, Roach says, employees will be more likely to advocate on behalf of their employer, discretionary effort soars, employer loyalty increases, and trust is enhanced. Beyond the benefits within the organization, increased economic optimism means employees’ civic attitudes surge and trust radiates outward into the marketplace.

“By prioritizing what employees want and need out of work, employers can build a better future—inside the workplace and beyond,” Roach says.

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