Morgan McKinley: Six in ten UK tech workers plan to quit in 2026

UK workers are bracing for a wave of voluntary departures, with 59% planning to search for a new role in the next six months, according to Morgan McKinley's 2026 Workplace Trends Report. That figure sits well above the 49% global average and points to a confidence gap that UK employers appear to be underestimating.

The findings are based on responses from 2,799 employees and 214 employers across seven markets, including the UK, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Ireland, Japan and Singapore. The research was conducted online in late 2025 and covered attitudes to pay, job security, AI, flexible working and professional development.

The confidence gap

Only 22% of UK employees said they feel secure in their current role, compared with 30% globally. That contrast is notable given that 63% of employers surveyed said they have no planned headcount reductions for 2026. In other words, employers are signalling stability while employees are reading the situation very differently.

More than a third of employees globally (37%) believe their role could be affected by restructuring, automation or cost-cutting. Of those who feel at risk, 85% said they would begin applying for new roles and 64% said they would invest in new skills or certifications.

Pay is a material driver of the anxiety. Nearly 70% of employees globally said they had not received a salary increase in the past six months, up from 65% in 2025, suggesting that real-terms pay pressure is accumulating against a backdrop of persistent inflation.

Mark Astbury, Director at Morgan McKinley, said: "The most striking finding for the UK is the gap between employer expectations and employee confidence. Many organisations are planning for stability, but employees are reading the signals around pay, progression, AI and job security very differently."

AI reshaping the talent market

AI is increasingly influencing both sides of the hiring equation. Some 43% of employees globally reported using AI or automation tools in their job search, up sharply from 26% in 2025. Candidate-side adoption of AI for CV drafting, interview preparation and role matching is accelerating faster than employer-side readiness, creating friction.

Employer use of AI in assessment is generating pushback: 46% of respondents said they are uncomfortable with AI being used to evaluate interview performance. That resistance has practical implications for HR and talent acquisition teams deploying automated screening tools, particularly in jurisdictions where algorithmic decision-making in employment is subject to regulatory scrutiny. The EU AI Act classifies AI systems used in recruitment and employment management as high-risk, requiring conformity assessments before deployment; UK employers operating in Europe will need to factor that into hiring-technology roadmaps.

Separately, AI and data skills ranked as the top development priority for employees globally, cited by 70% of respondents. Yet 56% said their employer is not investing enough in professional development, a disconnect that is likely to accelerate attrition among digitally literate workers who see skills investment as a proxy for long-term job security.

Market context

The broader UK labour market has been cooling from the tight conditions of 2022 and 2023, with vacancy numbers trending down and real-wage growth slowing. For technology and data-focused workers, the picture is more nuanced: demand for AI engineering, cloud architecture and cybersecurity skills remains elevated, but roles in middle-management IT and back-office automation are under pressure from both cost-cutting and the productivity effects of generative AI tools.

For employers, the Morgan McKinley data reinforces a message that retention risk is not a pipeline problem. It is a confidence and communication problem. Organisations that are restructuring or introducing AI tooling without clearly articulating career implications are the most exposed. The next six months will test whether UK employers can close the perception gap before attrition peaks.