Survey provides insight into life in the modern Revenue
A survey carried out as part of the 2014 Civil Service People Survey shows that there is significant discontentment amongst the rank and file of HMRC.
Just over half the workforce of HMRC took part in the survey and whilst 59% committed themselves to staying with the department in the next 3 years one wonders why when only 23% would recommend it as a ‘great place to work’. Furthermore less than one-third of the participants felt inspired, motivated or proud to be a part of the Revenue and only 31% felt a strong personal attachment to HMRC.
There appears to be no confidence in management, with only 24% feeling that the department is, as whole, well managed and just 22% trusting the decisions made by senior managers.
It may come as no surprise that a mere 19% felt change was well managed in HMRC and 18% felt that such changes were for the better.
When it came to decision making, 43% considered themselves to be involved in decisions affecting their work and less than a quarter felt they could contribute their views before decisions were made that affected them. Less than one-third believe it is safe to challenge the way things are done.
Whilst most were happy with management on a personal level, 39% indicated that poor performance was dealt with effectively within their teams. This is something that is manifestly obvious for anyone who has had the misfortune to deal with incompetent Revenue staff.
One of the key motivators for any employee, that being pay, was clearly a big issue for Revenue staff, with just around 20% being satisfied with the whole remuneration package. Compared to those doing similar jobs in other organisations, only 18% felt their pay to be reasonable.
Less than half believe there are opportunities for them to develop their careers and just over one-third consider that learning and development activities they have completed whilst in the employ of HMRC have been worthwhile in advancing their positions.
The results of this survey do not bode well for the future and with increasing demands and efficiencies heaped upon the Revenue, the department’s quality of work will suffer, ergo so will we.
The full survey can be found here (PDF).
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