Employee sentiment fell in January

The Employee Motivation and Commitment Index started the new year with a slight decline, sliding five points to 124. The index remains near historic highs set during the second half of 2024 and is up 15 points year over year.

Beginning this month, the EMC Index is presented as a three-month rolling average, a methodology that identifies long-term trends while smoothing out short-term data fluctuations. This approach was applied to sector-level measurements beginning in October 2024.

Employee sentiment improved in two sectors in January. Information climbed nine points to 150, a record high for the sector in data going back to March 2022. Retail and wholesale trade rose four points to 124.

Real estate, a category that tends to be volatile, showed January’s biggest decline, falling 25 points to 86, the sector’s lowest level since June 2023.

Health care and social assistance fell 15 points to 122, its largest month-over-month drop. Transportation and warehousing fell 10 points to 157, its first decline since August. Construction and related trades fell nine points to 96, continuing a downward trend that began in August.

“While we are seeing a downward trend in some sectors, the index is still riding a high that began in the second half of 2024.” said Dr. Mary Hayes, director of People and Performance Research at ADP Research. “Real estate will be one sector to watch in the coming year.”

The Employee Motivation and Commitment Index tracks how people think and feel about their jobs and employers. ADP Research collects data each month using a panel survey to gather a stratified, random panel sample of 2,500 U.S. workers. This month’s survey was fielded Jan. 2-6, 2025.

By providing a real-time measure of the state of worker allegiance, the index can tell us whether people are flourishing in their jobs or detaching.

Note: The EMC Index for December 2024 was updated with a correction on Jan. 13, 2025, to say that worker sentiment rose in December. A previous version of the report said the index had fallen.

ADP Research publishes the EMC Index on the third Tuesday of every month. The next release will be Feb. 18. For EMC Index historical data, visit the ADP Research Data Lab.