Key Findings
- The US is the tenth most productive country in the world
- Disengaged employees cost $8.9 trillion in global GDP
- Poor employee health costs the US $575 billion in lost productivity
- Four out of five workers say that AI boosts productivity
- Remote workers experience a 22% increase in deep-focus work
- The global market for productivity software was $59.88 billion in 2023
- Workers with flexible working conditions are 39% more productive
Key Workplace Productivity Statistics for 2025
The United States is the 10th most productive country in the world, with a $69,288 GDP per capita. (World Population Review)
The most productive country in 2024 is Luxembourg, with a GDP per capita of $134,754.
The second and third most productive countries are:
- Singapore: $116,487 per capita
- Ireland: $106,456 per capita
The least productive countries are:
- Democratic Republic of Congo: $1,185 per capita
- Central African Republic: $925 per capita
- Burundi: $788 per capita
Disengaged employees account for approximately $8.9 trillion lost in global GDP. (Gallup)
This is staggering and accounts for a massive 9% of global GDP.
According to Gallup’s 2024 State of Workplace report, most workers do not feel engaged. In fact:
- 15% of workers say they are actively disengaged
- 62% of workers say they are not engaged
- Only 23% are engaged
In 2020, Poor employee health cost US employers $575 billion in lost productivity. (IBI)
This amounts to 1.5 billion days in total.
$950 billion is spent annually on health care benefits. And, for every dollar of that, $0.61 of it accounts for lost productivity due to illness and injury.
2024 statistics for these costs are not available. However, the WTW’s 2024 Best Practices in Healthcare Survey found that U.S. employers expect healthcare costs will increase by 7.7% in 2025.
This is one top of the 6.9% increase experienced in 2024 and 6.5% in 2023.
And, Med City News states that the estimated total cost of care per employee in 2024 is $18,639, up $1,438 from 2023.
Given these trends, it's reasonable to estimate that poor employee health will cost US businesses well over $600 billion in lost productivity in 2024, with continued increases expected in the coming years.
Increasing productivity is the number one driver of business transformation in 2024. (Mercer)
When asked how organizations intended to increase productivity, executives responded with the following top five areas:
- Employee upskilling and reskilling (51%)
- Physical and mental wellbeing initiatives (45%)
- Process and workflow optimization (44%)
- Generative AI (40%)
- Simplified organizational structure (37%)
This is encouraging because it means that businesses are willing to invest in the right things to make their workers more content and satisfied.
Mercer also found that,
“Intentional work design” is a key way that organizations intend to boost productivity.
Intentional design is the practice of creating environments, processes, and systems with deliberate thought to increase employee well-being and support productivity.
The whole idea behind it is to enhance collaboration, innovation, and inclusivity.
The way organizations intend to implement intentional work design is by:
- Defining which roles are most suitable for agile working
- Identifying roles most suitable for job sharing
- Identifying skills/roles best served by gig/freelance workers
- Identifying roles most suitable for hybrid/remote working
Additionally, 53% of executives project that AI and automation will bring a 10-30% productivity boost over the next three years.
It’s no doubt then, that,
Four out of five workers say that AI boosts productivity. (Economist)
It’s clear that AI has affected every corner of our lives, but especially so where productivity is concerned.
- 79% say that AI has improved their productivity at work
- 75% think that AI reduces the time spent on repetitive tasks
- 73% of workers think that AI improves the quality of their work
The biggest way that AI is used to increase productivity is by automating repetitive tasks (41%) and summarizing documents (30%).
And there’s more: Workers who have adopted AI at work are 90% more likely to report high productivity. (Slack)
When compared with their less productive counterparts, those who are most productive are 242% more likely to be using AI.
We all know that automation is a time saver. Globally, it’s been found that automation saves an average of 3.6 hours per worker weekly.
In total, 36% of workers feel that automation affords them a better work/life balance.
In the next few years, we do not doubt that AI will continue taking on ever larger roles within the workspace.
Most desk workers want their productivity measured by their performance against KPIs and goals. (Slack)
Productivity can be subjective, especially for tasks that cannot be easily defined by facts and figures. Therefore, individual goals play a central role in how productivity is measured.
Other preferred ways to measure productivity include:
- 17% of employees want their performance measured by managerial conversations
- Only 14% want productivity measured by the hours spent on tasks
With executive roles, it’s a different story:
- 27% want their productivity measured by the visible activity they do
- 19% prefer KPIs and goals
- 15% want cost metrics
However, remote workers feel the pressure to look productive, even if it’s detrimental to their work/life balance:
- 53% feel pressured to respond to emails after working hours are over
- 50% feel the pressure to always make their colleagues aware that they are being productive
Remote working increases productivity with individuals experiencing a 22% increase in deep-focus work. (Hub Staff)
If we look at work on a weekly basis:
- Remote workers enjoy 22.75 hours of focus time
- In-office workers only get 18.6 hours
These figures are down to the number of distractions that workers face in each environment:
- Office workers suffer 3.4 daily distractions. That’s 1,241 per year!
- Remote workers get distracted 2.78 times per day.
Although remote working has its own distractions, it’s clear that it provides a lot more time to focus than a busy office environment.
Overall, remote workers save over 61 hours annually just by working in a less distracting environment!
According to Microsoft 365 users, the top obstacle in the way of productivity is holding inefficient meetings. (Microsoft)
Meetings for the sake of meetings. We’ve all sat through one or ten.
This obstacle is closely followed by:
- Lacking clear goals
- Having too many meetings (Since February 2020, Microsoft has observed that people are attending 3x more Teams meetings and calls per week – an increase of 192%).
- Feeling uninspired
- Not easily finding the required information
12% of employees say that multitasking stifles productivity. (Workamajig)
Ahh, the misconception that multitasking actually gets things done faster. It’s simply not true.
However, multitasking is not the only factor holding us up. Other things getting in the way of a productive workday, include:
- Boredom (10%)
- Personal problems (9%)
- Feeling overwhelmed by workplace changes (7%)
- Smoke breaks (7%)
- Snack breaks (5%)
- Fire alarms (2%)
Going back to multitasking, here’s a study to back up its ineffectiveness:
Multitasking takes 15% more time compared to working sequentially. (ERSJ)
During this study, eye-tracking methods were used to analyze the effects of multitasking on individual performance. All participants worked at the same computer station and it was found that overall, multitasking:
- Takes more time
- Stifles creativity
- Worsens performance
Multitasking under pressure fared even worse and reduced accuracy and decision-making consistency.
Although it’s tempting to multitask, focusing on one thing at a time is far more effective and productive.
Organizations are investing in productivity software. The market is expected to grow 14.1% by 2030. (Grand View Research)
In 2023 the global market for productivity software was estimated at $59.88 billion.
This increase is down to the preference for a centralized digital workplace. Organizations that prioritize digital workplace management, do so to enhance productivity.
The report found that 60% of workers experience burnout due to digital communication. Using productivity management software helps prevent this issue.
Swedish company Brath switched to 6-hour workdays, and its revenue has been almost doubling year on year. (Brath)
The organization’s employees produce more than similar companies and get more done in six hours than comparable companies do in eight.
Employees report feeling more rested and creative. They still work overtime, however, that means staying for seven or eight hours instead of six. Regardless of overtime, they still leave the office before 5 pm.
Happy employees are 12% more productive. (SMF)
A scientific study conducted in 2015 found that making workers happy resulted in a 12% uptick in productivity. Even better, rewarding them with snacks and drinks increased productivity by as much as 20%.
So, look after your workers, and they’ll look after you.
Speaking of happiness,
Workers with flexible working conditions are 39% more productive. (Future Forum)
Coupled with their ability to perform deep-focus work, they are also more likely to stay in their current roles
In contrast, employees with rigid work schedules say they are:
- 2.5x more likely to “definitely” look for a new job
- 4.6x more likely to suffer from work-related stress and anxiety
- 2.6x to have a worse work/life balance
Today’s employees are looking for a work schedule that can accommodate their needs as much as the employers. If they feel trapped or unable to have a good work/life balance, they’ll jump ship.
The organizations listed on Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” beat the market stock performance average by 3.68. (Great Place to Work)
Why?
Because 86% of their employees are willing to give extra at work. Also, voluntary staff turnover is less than half of the US average.
These companies are the gold standard of employers. So, if you’re looking to understand how to make your workers happy and productive, take some inspiration from what these organizations do.
Final Thoughts
We hope you found these employee productivity statistics interesting!
There’s no doubt that in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, productivity is a hot topic of conversation. And, organizations are looking for easy ways to increase it.
One of the best ways to understand productivity is by using time-tracking software. Once you get a clear picture of how workers are spending their time, you can identify the ways to improve it.
Sources
- World Population Review: Most Productive Countries
- Gallup: State of Global Workplace 2024
- Integrated Benefits Institute (IBI): Poor Health Costs
- WTW: Healthcare costs at a post-pandemic high
- Med City News: Employer Health Costs
- Mercer: 2024 Global Talent Trends Report
- Economist Impact: Search of Lost Focus 2023
- Slack: State of Work 2023
- Hub Staff: Remote Workers Engage in Deeper Work With Fewer Interruptions
- Microsoft: 2023 Work Trend Index: Annual Report
- Workamajig: Top distractions at work killing productivity in 2023
- ERSJ: Multitasking Effects on Individual Performance
- Grand View Research: Productivity Management Software Market Size and Trends
- Social Market Foundation (SMF): Happiness and productivity
- Future Forum: Pulse Report 2023
- Brath: Why We Started With Six-Hour Workdays
- Social Market Foundation (SMF): Happiness and productivity
- Great Place to Work: Best Companies to Work For
