By Jibril Abdul Mumuni
Accra, Aug. 20, GNA – Job security and the opportunity to pursue a dream job are now stronger motivators for Ghanaian workers than salary and other financial rewards, according to findings from the 2026 Employee Motivation Survey Report (EMSR).
The survey, conducted by Data Insight of JOB Group Ltd, HRP Consult Ltd and Talentia Africa Ltd, found that non-financial factors continued to dominate employee motivation rankings across Ghanaian organisations.
The top five motivators identified were Dream Job, Job Security, Career Development, Safe Work Environment and Manager Relationship.
Salary and compensation, although important, did not feature among the top five motivators.
Presenting the findings at an EMSR Breakfast Meeting in Accra, Mr Ebenezer Obeng-Nyarkoh a Data Scientist and Lead Analyst on the study, said the results challenged the widely held belief that pay was the primary factor driving employee motivation.
“It is only a perception that pay is what motivates employees,” he said.
“The evidence shows that pay is not even among the top five motivating factors. Pay is among the top 10 motivating factors, but not among the top five.”
According to the report, Dream Job emerged as the number one motivator in 2026, reflecting employees’ desire to work in roles that align with their aspirations, interests and personal fulfilment.
Job Security, meanwhile, remained consistently among the top-rated motivators throughout the survey’s five-year tracking period from 2022 to 2026.
Mr Obeng-Nyarkoh explained that workers increasingly valued stability and certainty in an environment characterised by economic pressures and changing labour market conditions.
“People want to wake up knowing they have work to go to,” he said.
“It is only when you have job security that the pay cheque becomes relevant. Without job security, you lose your pay cheque.”
The report was based on responses from 769 participants and examined more than 20 workplace motivators over a five-year period.
Researchers used annual survey data to assess how employee priorities have evolved and how these factors influence satisfaction, loyalty and workplace engagement.
The findings indicate that career development opportunities have become increasingly important to workers, ranking among the leading motivators in recent years.
Researchers said employees were placing greater value on opportunities for growth, learning and advancement than on financial incentives alone.
Manager-employee relationships also emerged as a critical driver of workplace motivation.
Mr Nyarkoh noted that even highly paid employees could become disengaged if they experienced poor relationships with supervisors.
“If you do not have a good relationship with your boss and you have to go to the office every day and meet your boss, you will not be happy, even if you are earning a lot of money,” he said.
The survey further found that employee satisfaction stood at 3.7 out of five, indicating that workers were generally satisfied but not fully engaged.
The researchers observed that strengthening the top five motivators could significantly improve satisfaction levels and organisational commitment.
Mr Nyarkoh urged employers and human resource practitioners to pay close attention to the survey results and focus their interventions on the factors employees themselves had identified as most important.
“The people have spoken, all the numbers are saying job security. If I am coming to the office and I am not confident that I have a job, I will not be happy and I will not be motivated.”
GNA
Reporter: Jibril Abdul Mumuni
[email protected]
Edited by Samuel Osei-Frempong