Not so long ago, employees desperately clung to jobs, due to concerns about the economic downturn and high unemployment. However, the Q1 Glassdoor.com Employment Confidence Survey suggests this trend may be starting to erode.

In a survey conducted among 2,045 U.S. adults age 18 years and older, Glassdoor.com found that 40 percent of those polled believe it’s “likely” they could find a new job matched to their experience and compensation levels within six months if they lost their job right now. This result represents the highest percentage in six quarters.

The survey, conducted by Harris Interactive, also pointed out that roughly one-third of those polled were uncertain they could find a new job matched to skills and compensation levels in a six-month period, while 28 percent believed it “unlikely” they could do so.

Though employee confidence in the job market was on the rise, confidence in job security, pay raises and company outlooks remained flat. The Glassdoor.com report attributes this to the fact that employers continue cutting back in other areas, though the rate of layoffs has declined in recent quarters. Still, more than half of employees polled reported their employers changed or reduced compensation in the past six months, while slightly less than one-third indicated their personal compensation was either reduced or eliminated.

Rusty Rueff, Glassdor.com career and workplace expert, who also co-authored "Talent Force: A New Manifesto for the Human Side of Business," said the survey should put employers on alert. On the one hand, he said, there is growing optimism about hiring, while on the other hand, employees are somewhat more dismayed about what’s in store at their own companies.

"This report should put employers on alert as the economy improves and employees become less risk-averse to change,” said Rueff, who also ran global HR departments at Electronic Arts and PepsiCo. “We're seeing early warning signs that employment churn will rise, which will be another disruptive and costly outcome of the recession for those who don't prepare. Now is the time for employers to reassess practices they put in place to get through the Great Recession and refresh their perspective on the pay and development needs of each of their employees."

Instant Insights /

Survey: Employees more confident in finding jobs to match skills, compensation

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