Philippines Leads Southeast Asia in Retention Crisis (AoN)

Why So Many Are Quitting — And What Smart Companies Should Do Now

A Commentary on the Philippines’ Retention Crisis Challenge

If there’s one thing that keeps HR leaders up at night, it’s this: the Philippines is now projected to have the highest employee turnover in Southeast Asia.
 
That’s according to a recent Philstar article referencing the Aon study.

It’s not just about people leaving jobs — it’s a watershed moment: companies that respond wisely will win; those that don’t will bleed talent.

What’s Likely Going On — The Big Picture

The 2025 Aon “Salary Increase & Turnover Study” projects a 20 % attrition rate for Philippine firms.

At the same time, 64 % of Filipino employees are actively thinking of a move within 12 months, according to Aon’s 2025 Philippine workforce sentiment report.

In specific sectors, turnover is already highest in:

• Consulting, business & community services (≈ 22.6 %) – Aon APAC newsroom
• Retail (≈ 21.6 %) – Aon APAC newsroom
• Manufacturing (≈ 17.5 %) – Aon APAC newsroom

Among functions, those most likely to jump are in:

• Sales (~24 %)
• IT / Information Systems (~24 %)
• AI / Machine Learning (~21 %)
• Cybersecurity (~20 %)
• Engineering (~19 %) – Philstar

So the winds are shifting. The “job for life” is dead.
Employees are shopping around — for better compensation, meaning, flexibility, and growth.

Top Industries That Will Feel the Heat

These sectors are most “at risk” of turnover surges in the Philippines:

• BPO / Call Center / Shared Services – always under pressure, always competing. (PEAK Learning)
• Consulting / Business & Community Services – ~22.6 % turnover, long hours, client stress. (Philstar)
• Retail / Consumer Goods / FMCG – frontliners underpaid and under stress. (Inquiro)
• IT / Digital / Tech / Fintech – mobile skills, global remote opportunities.
• Manufacturing / Plant / Engineering – talent migrating to dynamic city or tech roles.
• Financial Services / Back-Office / Shared Finance – mid-specialists targeted by better-paying firms.
• Public Sector / Education (non-teaching) – heavy workloads, limited salary flexibility.

If your business sits in these sectors, retention risk should already be a strategic KPI.

Who Will “Likely” Leave?

Note: Role vulnerability insights below combine published Aon data (Philstar report) and aggregated observations from local HR practitioners on workforce mobility patterns in Philippine industries.

Not everybody moves equally. Here are the roles most vulnerable to turnover in 2025:

• Mid-level specialists (senior analysts, technical experts) — often caught between junior execution and leadership, with limited advancement visibility.
• Team leads / frontline managers — squeezed by pressure from both senior management and their teams.
• Customer-facing roles (sales, account managers) — exposed to performance stress and burnout risks.
• IT / Engineering / Data professionals — highly portable, in-demand skills; global remote work expands their mobility.
• Operations / Support / Admin staff — often in transactional, repetitive functions where perceived growth is low.
• HR / Talent / L&D practitioners — first to sense disengagement; may leave when unable to influence change.
• Project / Program Managers — bridging roles across functions, with high complexity and burnout exposure.

Source: Philstar / Aon 2025 Salary Increase & Turnover Study

If your firm has many of these, mark them as critical retention zones.

Why Are People Quitting? – Top Reasons

Based on regional and local research:

• 💸 Pay & Benefits Misalignment – compensation lagging peers. (Mercer)
• 🚧 Lack of Career Growth / Stagnation – no clear next step. (ResearchGate)
• 🧑‍💼 Poor Leadership / Weak Managerial Support
• 🔥 Burnout, Work Overload, Role Ambiguity
• 💭 Cultural Misfit / Lack of Belonging
• 🏠 Need for Flexibility (remote or hybrid)
• 🌍 External Pull / Market Opportunities – global and startup offers.
• 🙅‍♀️ Poor Recognition / Feedback / Voice

A Philippine study also flagged compensation, environment, management style, and policy mismatch as key predictors. (Research Synergy Press Journal)

When someone “just left,” it’s rarely spontaneous — it’s many small dissatisfactions built over time.

Where Will People Go?

Analysts expect mobility towards:

• Better-paying competitors in the same industry
• Global or multinational firms with strong branding
• Startups and tech-driven firms promising growth
• Remote / offshore roles for global clients
• Freelance / gig / contract opportunities
• Overseas work in IT, healthcare, finance
• Adjacent functions offering meaning and growth

Professionals move toward fulfillment, stability, and alignment.

What HR & Leadership Can Do (Your Action Playbook)

Here are practical, high-impact moves — from top to bottom:

1. Make Retention a Strategic KPI
   Track engagement trends and pay gaps.
   Tie manager performance to retention success.
2. Reboot Your EVP (Employee Value Proposition)
   Offer flexibility, wellness, and personalized benefits.
3. Invest in Career Paths & Learning
   Provide dual career ladders, mentoring, and skill access.
4. Coach Your Managers
   Develop feedback, empathy, and accountability.
5. Redesign Work & Clarify Roles
   Simplify workloads, enable hybrid setups.
6. Engage Authentically
   Conduct stay interviews, recognize wins, promote belonging.
7. Provide Selective Retention Incentives
   Focus on key roles and high-risk clusters.
8. Communicate Transparently
   Be open about constraints but consistent in purpose.
9. Plan Mobility & Succession
   Promote internal transfers and cross-training before hiring out.

If leadership treats retention as a cost, you’ll lose.
If you treat it as a differentiator, you’ll win.

How the ASK Framework Helps Organizations Keep Their Best People

When retention feels like a revolving door, quick fixes won’t cut it. Real retention starts with alignment — that’s where the ASK Framework (Align, Strengthen, Kickstart) makes a difference.

A – Align: Strategy + People = Shared Direction

When employees see where the company is headed — and how their work connects — loyalty follows.
ASK aligns business goals with people goals and turns strategy into daily behavior.

S – Strengthen: Build Skills, Systems, and Culture

Even the most inspired teams burn out without support.
ASK strengthens managers through coaching, performance systems, and culture building — the glue that makes people stay.

K – Kickstart: Activate Performance and Belonging

Change matters only when acted upon.
ASK kickstarts real behavior shifts through pulse check-ins, learning sprints, and recognition habits that sustain momentum.

The Bottom Line

Retention isn’t about stopping people from leaving — it’s about building a company they don’t want to leave.
ASK provides the roadmap:

• Align people and purpose
• Strengthen leadership and culture
• Kickstart performance habits that drive engagement

That’s how you build not just a workforce — but a work community that grows with you.

Wrapping It Up

This “retention crisis” is real — and it’s reshaping how Filipinos think about work and loyalty. But it’s not too late.
 
Companies that act boldly, smartly, and humanely can turn this challenge into a competitive advantage.