SINGAPORE – ‘Chaos’ featured on the job for many in 2023, with a substantial number of respondents in a survey saying they engaged in work that is unstructured, unpredictable and lacking in defined procedures.

“Chaotic working” was the top workplace trend in the December 2023 survey of 1,211 Singapore workers by hiring platform Indeed, with 16 per cent of respondents saying they practised it.

Participation in this trend pulled ahead of eight other trends workers were polled on, which include various practices that recently came to the fore.

For instance, moonlighting came in second with 13 per cent, while 12 per cent of respondents reported being a boomerang employee – the third-place trend.

Boomerang employees are those who start a new stint at an employer they previously worked at.

Conversely, only 7 per cent of respondents engaged in “rage applying”, which is the act of applying to as many jobs as possible as a reaction to building frustration, rounding off the ranking.

However, Indeed projects that rage applying and quiet quitting will gain traction and take the top two spots in 2024.

Ms Nishita Lalvani, Indeed’s marketing director for Singapore, India and South-east Asia, said these trends are closely tied to inadequate pay, workplace dissatisfaction, and limited opportunities for career advancement and flexibility.

“Workers are increasingly expressing their discontent by either impulsively applying for new roles or quietly disengaging from their current positions.”

She also said that as the cost of living increases, job seekers are increasingly likely to moonlight to supplement income, develop skills, explore entrepreneurial pursuits and take advantage of remote work opportunities.

Indeed added that although boomerang employees were a major trend in 2023, it lies at the bottom of the list for the 2024 forecast.

“The shift away from the boomerang employees trend is influenced by the ongoing focus on improving workplace culture, a key factor in initial employee departures,” Ms Lalvani said.

Indeed also polled workers on the job characteristics they valued the most as part of the same survey.

Flexibility came out on top, with 20 per cent of employees deeming it a workplace priority for them in 2024. Pay increases, promotion and career progression, and learning and development followed in that order.

Over half the respondents reported being content in their current job roles and that they were not looking to move jobs, though 31 per cent of workers said they would look for new jobs in 2024 to meet their new goals.

The remaining 16 per cent were neutral or undecided about seeking new employment in 2024.

Additionally, Indeed said, employees who perceived themselves to be working in a job that has a negative workplace culture were four times more likely to leave their workplace compared with those who rated their organisation’s workplace culture as extremely positive.

Of the employees wanting to move jobs in 2024, 42 per cent stated how they wish to join a larger organisation for access to better resources, pay and career prospects.

However, candidates may not necessarily be making mass applications out of frustration, said Mr Richard Bradshaw, chief executive for Asia at executive search firm Ethos BeathChapman.

For instance, job applications can be so complex that many people decide to make as many applications as they can when they can focus.

On the desire of job seekers to join larger organisations, Mr Bradshaw said organisations that provide the access such employees crave tend to be robust, forward-thinking medium-sized organisations. The largest firms may have more opportunities, but there is also greater competition.

“Larger companies are flush with a wide gamut of supporting acts, resources and prospects, but there is an army of employees looking to take advantage of as many of these as possible,” he added.