Gallup study: U.S. employee engagement hits a record low, with the largest decline among remote workers

U.S. employee engagement was 29% in the third quarter of 2026, the lowest since 2011, with the largest decline among remote workers. Fully remote employees saw a 5 percentage point drop in engagement, hybrid workers saw a 2 percentage point drop, and on-site workers saw only a 1 percentage point drop. Gallup notes that a lack of clear understanding of AI also affects employee satisfaction, with employees in AI adopters being comparable to those in non-adopters in terms of engagement.