2025 annual job security report

With the advent of AI and other workplace shifts, the future of employment is changing. To better understand this transformation, we engaged Reputation Leaders to survey workers and employers about job security, skills gap concerns, and career growth for our report, “Bridging the Gap: Overcoming a Silent Standoff in America’s Talent Economy.” The findings reveal a critical disconnect — employers are focused on the skills of tomorrow, but many workers already feel confident in their current abilities.

Despite this difference of opinions, solutions exist. While tomorrow’s careers are still developing, the majority of respondents agreed: Education can give you the confidence to make a splash in a crowded job market — and help you avoid falling into the growing skills gap divide.

In partnership with Reputation Leaders, we surveyed more than 1,500 employers and 500 employees, and the results were clear on 3 factors:

1. Job security is in question.
2. Durable skills still matter.
3. Education is a big differentiator.

Find out what’s driving these opinions and what you can do today to increase your career potential.

Bonus: Discover how AI is reshaping the professional landscape — and why leveraging this emerging tech is so important for reducing the skills gap right now.

Despite rapid technology advancements and uncertain economic factors, employers and workers are at odds when it comes to the realities of a growing skills gap in the workforce.

While organizations expect workers to adapt with shifting needs, most employees are confident in their current skills. This difference of opinion is creating a tension point in the workforce.

With so many employees feeling comfortable in their current roles, they aren’t taking time to learn new skills. According to our research, only about two-thirds of staff pursued professional development in 2025, down from more than 80% the previous year.

Despite that drop, workers are anxious about the future: more than 40% say they’re concerned about not being able to stand out in today’s competitive job market.

Organizations recognize this challenging moment, indicating they’re both concerned about the current talent gap and focused on prioritizing workforce resiliency. In our study, employers noted a need for more than half their workforce to significantly improve their skills to remain employable in just 5 years.

While a large majority of employees feel confident in their existing skills, the employers we surveyed have had a different experience. Almost two-thirds of employers indicated they’ve actually passed over staff for promotions and raises because their skills didn’t meet current expectations.

Technology will keep evolving in the future, but human-centered skills continue to hold value. In fact, it’s one of the points our survey respondents agreed on most clearly. Durable skills, like leadership, problem-solving, and communication, are transferable across roles and industries — and they’ll remain valuable in the future.

Interestingly, workers and employers in our study disagree strongly on the need for professional development to address the talent gap. Only about half of the employees we surveyed say employers should provide enough upskilling and reskilling resources. In contrast, 75% of employers feel they already meet this need.

Despite this striking difference, employers and workers overwhelmingly agree on an essential piece of the puzzle: Education can help you level up your skills and future-proof your career.

Employees in our survey feel positive about the potential of education to enhance their careers — and employers agree — as indicated by some of the strongest data in our research:

While employers value durable skills, they are also keenly focused on the growing need to develop practical AI skills. Both workers and employers are turning their attention to artificial intelligence tools, and learning this emerging tech could be a game-changer for tomorrow’s careers.