The ‘Employee Retention Report’, compiled by equity management platform Vestd, analysed 398,006 employees from 1,400 UK companies on LinkedIn to determine the average median employee tenure across 14 industries.

Hospitality had the second lowest tenure with employees staying an average of three years at a company, just ahead of the marketing industry with 2.8 years.

Young people aged 16-24 only make up 10% of the overall UK workforce but they make up 50% of waiting staff, 48% of bar staff and 48% of baristas according to ONS data. The researchers say this may influence the lower tenure as research suggests younger generations are more likely to stay in jobs for shorter periods.

Ifty Nasir, chief executive of Vestd, said: “Employee tenure is a key indicator of job satisfaction and company culture. Our findings demonstrate that, while it is natural to see movement between companies, industries like marketing, hospitality, and IT are struggling to effectively retain staff for long periods of time, leading to higher turnover rates and disrupted workplaces.  

“But with financial stability and well-being becoming a key priority for employees across all industries, offering robust packages that respond to these shifting needs has become a powerful incentive to not only retain current staff, but attract new talent. 

“Reward-based incentives, such as employee share schemes or enterprise management incentives (EMI schemes), provide employees with a sense of ownership within their workplace, whatever their role. It’s also a powerful incentive for staff to work their way up the ranks, decreasing employee turnover in the long-term while encouraging a vested interest in the success of the company.”