Workplace wellbeing will matter even more in 2026 as workers reshape how Australian small businesses attract and keep staff.

Research from Employment Hero’s newly-launched Employment Uncovered – drawing on 300,000 SME employee records and a national survey of 1,000 workers – revealed people were willing to leave jobs to avoid burnout but wished for a less stressful hiring experience.

Restless Workers Are Moving With The Times

It appears pandemic trends like the Great Resignation and quiet quitting are no longer fads – they’ve become ingrained in workplace culture. Fewer workers in 2025 feel compelled to remain in jobs they dislike and they don’t hesitate to seek positions more suited to their lifestyles.

23 per cent of people surveyed said they started a new role in 2025, either internally or at a new company. Showing an even greater appetite for change, 40 per cent of respondents admitted they were ending the year by actively or passively looking for a new job. 

Flexibility was a clear driver: an enormous 73 per cent of employees said they would prefer to work ‘on-demand,’ by choosing shifts or projects from an online platform, if it provided consistent work. This figure was even more stark among younger workers (aged 18-34), rising to 87 per cent. Four in ten would choose to earn less if the role enabled greater flexibility.

This restlessness and desire for work-life balance highlights the need for smart talent retention policies in small businesses in 2026. Owners can capitalise on the shift by prioritising flexible working arrangements and creating a positive and inclusive workplace culture. These factors have the added benefit of attracting talent as well.

Sickies Are A Sign Of A System Needing A Health Check

Whether job hunting or not, workers in 2025 made micro-moves to ward off burnout via the strategic use of sickies.

Once laughed off as an Aussie tradition, the survey suggested taking sick days when not physically unwell was now regarded as a legitimate tool for protecting mental health. 48 per cent of respondents reported taking a sickie in 2025 due to mental or emotional burnout. Younger workers were nearly twice as likely as older staff to stay home when overwhelmed or in need of a break.

Generally, staff were less likely to call in sick in small businesses than larger companies – 49 per cent compared to 58 per cent – and part-timers took fewer sickies than full-time employees. 23 per cent of self-employed people took a sickie in their own business.

While workers justified small absences, leave rates suggested a reluctance to take longer breaks. 43 per cent did not use all the annual leave to which they were entitled in 2025, rising to 55 per cent among 18-24-year-olds.. 

SMEs can potentially use these statistics to shield staff from burnout. If owners believe there is a link between staff taking more sickies and fewer holidays, they could encourage employees to take all their annual leave and lead by example in using their own accrued vacation time. They can also ensure structures are in place to recognise unmanageable workloads.

Flaws In The Hiring Process Are Spooking Job Hunters

Here’s a scary statistic: half of all jobseekers fear they have applied for a ‘ghost’ job – a role that is advertised but doesn’t actually exist – in the past two years. The figure reflects broader frustration with the hiring sector, with 60 per cent saying the recruitment landscape was so bad, they’d put off searching for a new role.

They also objected to a different kind of ghosting: 56 per cent said applying for jobs and not hearing back was the most infuriating part of the recruitment process. When companies did respond, they were often seen as slow and impersonal; 42 per cent of people cited long delays between interviews and decisions and 35 per cent felt insulted by automated rejections. Ads added to the angst, as 43 per cent of respondents were annoyed when jobs were posted without salaries. A third cent felt advertisements were too vague or demanded unrealistic skills and experience. The most-detested job interview questions were “What’s your biggest weakness?” and “Where do you see yourself in five years?”

36 per cent of people who started at a new company in 2025 said the position was hard to find and difficult to secure. Once hired, one in four rated onboarding policies as bad.

These results suggest perceived hiring barriers are restricting the talent pool and preventing quality candidates making themselves available. But SMEs can set themselves apart by offering transparency and communication: listing a salary range, responding to applicants and ensuring smooth, welcoming onboarding processes, especially for part-time team members.

Accept AI Is Here To Stay, If You Haven’t Already 

If AI was still a buzzword this year, 2026 may be the year it becomes part of the office furniture. 

Only 21 per cent of workers said they were using the technology daily. Just under half reported weekly AI use, but it was higher among workers who started new roles this year, at 61 per cent. Millennial and Generation Z employees were more than 60 per cent more likely to use AI at work than Generation X and older. Queenslanders were the biggest AI adopters, with 47 per cent using it weekly, compared to 38 per cent of Western Australians.

While 44 per cent of people said their employers encouraged AI integration, an almost equal proportion, 41 per cent, said their bosses were indifferent, either not empowering staff to use it or not introducing the tech into workflows. Five per cent went so far as to say their workplace discouraged AI input. This presents an opportunity for SMEs to get ahead of the pack if they prioritise AI adoption going into 2026 and explore tasks that could be automated to increase productivity.

The balancing of AI and ‘soft’ skills looks set to continue in 2026, with 34 per cent of employees ranking digital and data skills as most important in the evolving job market. But, significantly, 27 per cent prioritised empathy and wellbeing, care and looking after others, suggesting human-centric attributes were still highly valued.

Preparing for 2026

There are clear opportunities for SMEs to set themselves up for success in 2026 by making the most of the employment landscape. Supporting workers with flexibility and clearer boundaries can lead to greater morale, productivity and prosperity.