Why Job Security Is Becoming the Defining Issue of the Future of Work

For years, headlines have highlighted low unemployment and a strong labour market. On the surface, everything appears to be stable. Something else different is happening beneath it. A significant proportion of workers are dissatisfied with the prospects for their jobs. According to ADP Research’s Today at Work 2026 survey, only about one-quarter (22%) of workers believe their jobs are safe from elimination. This indicates a more fundamental shift—one that extends beyond economic cycles and into how labour itself is being redefined.

Confidence Is the New Currency

The most remarkable lesson is not only the decline in job security, but also the direct impact on performance. Employees who feel secure are far more engaged, productive, and inclined to stay. This reframes a long-held belief: remuneration is not the major driver of success; clarity is. Employees in a workplace transformed by automation and AI are asking, “Where do I fit?” rather than “What do I earn?” Organizations that fail to answer this question risk losing workforce alignment.

Unpaid Work And How To Make 9 to 5 More Productive:

• 64% of Canadian workers do up to 5 hours of unpaid work per week, while 36% do 6 hours or more. Canadian C-suite executives report the highest rate, with 28% working 16 or more unpaid hours per week, about 8 percentage points above the global C-suite average of 20%.
• Millennial workers bear the hardest load. Canadian workers aged 27 to 39 are the most likely to work extreme unpaid hours, with 19% reporting 16 or more hours per week. That is significantly higher than the global rate for the same cohort (12%), and the highest of any age group in Canada. 
• Mid-sized businesses report the highest amount of unpaid hours. 18% of employees at medium-sized Canadian companies (250-999 employees) work 16 or more unpaid hours per week, the highest rate of any company size in Canada, compared to 13% at small and 10% at big organizations. These are firms that are large enough to have high workloads but lack the HR infrastructure and policies to handle them.

The Visibility Gap Inside Organizations

Confidence is not equally distributed. Executives report far stronger job security than frontline staff and individual contributors. This creates a “visibility gap” in which individuals closest to decision-making feel knowledgeable and steady, while those carrying out the work feel uneasy. This divide is more than simply psychological; it has a tangible influence on engagement and retention. When employees lack visibility into strategy, change efforts can feel more like upheaval than progress.

AI Is Creating a Two-Speed Workforce

Artificial intelligence is hastening the separation. A tiny group of employees who use AI tools regularly is much more engaged. At the same time, a sizable percentage of the workforce has had little or no exposure to these technologies. 

This widens the skills and confidence gap: 

• Those who adopt AI feel empowered and future-ready. 
• Those who avoid feeling left behind. 

The implication is quite simple. AI is more than just a technological development; it is also a force of workforce fragmentation.

A Few Important Factors To Note On A Multi-Generational Workforce

There are a few key insights taken from ADP Research’s annual Global Workforce Survey. The findings provide important insights into how workers truly feel about AI, existing workforce engagement levels, the challenges and opportunities that a multigenerational workforce presents, and trends in unpaid hours. 

“Today at Work meets this moment of structural change with data-driven insights that leaders can leverage to craft a modern talent strategy,” said Jay Caldwell, chief talent officer, ADP. “Workers who clearly see the role their existing skillsets will play in an organization’s future and investment by their employers in helping them develop skills of the future will be more engaged, productive and have the confidence to thrive in this next era of work.”

For the first time, five generations, from teenagers to great-grandparents, are working together in the same workplace.  Here are some important statistics:

• Today at Work discovered that only 18% of workers aged 55 to 64 and 19% of workers aged 65+ strongly agreed they have the abilities needed to develop, compared with younger workers aged 18 to 26 (29%) and 27 to 39 (30%). 
• 12% of workers aged 55 to 64 and 65+ strongly agreed that their employer invests in the skills they require, compared to 21% of those aged 18 to 26 and 27 to 39. 
• One-fifth (20%) of workers aged 18 to 26 strongly feel that AI will have a beneficial impact on their jobs in the coming year. That feeling declines as workers age, with 15% of workers aged 40 to 54 and 10% of workers aged 55 to 64 stating that AI will have a favourable impact on their jobs in the coming year. 
• Despite their negative attitudes toward career advancement and on-the-job support, those aged 55 and older are just as likely as other age groups to feel a sense of purpose in their employment. They’re just as likely to be totally engaged at work, and they’re far and away the least likely of any group to be considering quitting. 
• Talent Takeaway: Use this multigenerational workforce to provide cross-generational mentorship opportunities in which skills and knowledge flow both ways. Organizations may combine AI-native, tech-savvy younger staff with the judgment and expertise of senior workers to create responsible AI inputs and outputs that achieve meaningful business outcomes. Connecting enthusiasm and experience can produce significant achievements.

Engagement Remains Stubbornly Low

Despite years of investment in culture, benefits, and employee experience, worldwide engagement has remained essentially consistent. More than 80% of employees are not fully engaged. This shows that standard methods are no longer effective. Perks and initiatives cannot compensate for the uncertainties around long-term significance. Today, engagement is increasingly linked to expected future worth, rather than current comfort.

“From job security to engagement and artificial intelligence, Issue 1 of Today at Work 2026 captures the pulse of global workforce sentiment,” said Dr. Mary Hayes, director of people and performance, ADP Research. “Our Global Workforce Survey takes these sentiment trends layers deeper to understand how they vary according to industry, education, work type, work environment, and seniority level. This level of granularity can help employers of all sizes around the world better understand what makes workers tick and how slight tweaks in strategy can lead to big performance optimizations.”

The Hidden Cost of the Expanding Workday

Workload patterns introduce a new layer of complexity. Many employees report working long, unpaid hours every week. Interestingly, individuals who put in the most time frequently report high engagement—but low production. This indicates a critical tension: effort is increasing, yet clarity is not. Without direction, more work does not yield better results.

A Generational Divide in Outlook

The workforce is likewise dividing along generational lines. Younger workers are more likely to be enthusiastic about AI and skill growth. Older workers are less confident about adapting to these changes, notwithstanding their great dedication and sense of purpose in their professions. This relationship carries both risk and opportunity. Organizations that invest in cross-generational learning can help to close the gap. Those who ignore it risk increasing internal disintegration.

However, there’s a lot that can be done in mentorship, talent management, and workforce engagement. 

“Despite three years of historically low global unemployment and steady economic growth,  our data reveals widespread job insecurity expressed by workers worldwide,” said Dr. Nela Richardson, chief economist, ADP. “For employers, the worker sentiment findings from Today at Work can help inform new talent management practices rooted in powering skills development, building trust, leveraging cross-generational mentorship, and nurturing employee engagement.”

The Real Issue: A Trust and Communication Gap

This is more than just a narrative about technology or the labour market. It’s a communication problem. Workers are not fighting change; they are simply navigating it without sufficient understanding. AI adoption and automation tactics will not define the future of work on their own. It will be characterized by the effectiveness with which organizations engage their workers. This means: 

• Explaining how roles will evolve.

• Making skill paths visible and actionable.

• Creating transparency about strategy direction.

What This Means for Small and Mid-Sized Businesses

For SMEs, this is a strategic benefit. Smaller firms, unlike larger organizations, can create trust, align personnel, and communicate change more effectively. The chance is to lead with clarity rather than simply adopting new technologies. Because amid the “Great Uncertainty,” the businesses that prevail will not be those with the most advanced equipment. They will be the ones who understand their role in what happens next.

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Disclaimer: This article is based on publicly available information intended only for informational purposes. CanadianSME Small Business Magazine does not endorse or guarantee any products or services mentioned. Readers are advised to conduct their research and due diligence before making business decisions.