Since early 2025, employee happiness scores have been on the rise, according to a survey, the Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS) conducted by BambooHR. Although, many workers reported feeling weary – bracing for layoffs, absorbing extra workloads, and approaching workplace conversations with extreme caution – despite being satisfied in their roles.
Now in Q2, the data suggests a continued increase in employee sentiment – leaving questions of whether the recovery is real, or just a survival response to ongoing volatility? In Q2, employee happiness scores jumped sharply – marking the largest quarter-over-quarter increase in over two years and placing employee sentiment back at levels last seen in early 2023.
“Given the current employment environment, the rise in eNPS scores may indicate an appreciation for job stability more than an upward trend in true employee happiness,” said Jonathan Vaas, Head of HR, Chief Legal Officer, BambooHR. “The benefit of eNPS is that it creates a measurable feedback loop over time, giving leaders the opportunity to listen and respond in a way that builds trust.”
Key takeaways from the survey revealed that by employee group, employees with less than one year and more than 25 years of tenure are the happiest. Happiness levels reportedly dropped sharply for those with 1 to 5 years of tenure, before rising again after the 6-year mark.
Additionally, smaller companies continue to report higher levels of satisfaction. Important to note however, the survey found that while small companies continue to excel, mid-to-large organizations (especially those with 250-500 employees) recorded some of the largest quarter-over-quarter gains in employee happiness.
Some of the major industries which saw happiness levels on the rise included construction, finance, education, technology and health care. Notably, the health care eNPS hit its highest point since July 2022 and the finance industry saw a sharp rebound in Q2, reaching sentiment levels not seen since late 2022.
The survey recommends that despite this positive rise in employee happiness, organizations should resist the temptation to coast.
“After two years of declining sentiment, employees are finally reporting higher happiness at work. But here’s the twist: this rebound isn’t rooted in perks or culture upgrades – it’s happening in the shadow of layoffs, economic anxiety, and AI disruption,” the study by BambooHR said. “For HR leaders, this moment is a reset button. The rise in employee sentiment might not be a celebration. It might be a sigh of relief.”
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