Employee engagement—the connection and interest people feel toward their work—has fallen below 30% in the United States, according to Gallup. This is the lowest level since 2011. The two-percentage-point decline from the previous quarter represents about 3.2 million fewer engaged workers. Meanwhile, the share described as actively disengaged rose from 17% to 18%.
Engagement among fully remote workers dropped five percentage points, compared with about one point among employees working on-site. The sharpest declines affected remote and hybrid workers at organizations using artificial intelligence. Hybrid employees divide their working time between home and the workplace.
Earlier in 2026, organizations using AI had stronger engagement than others in their industries. In the second quarter, their advantage was eight points among hybrid workers and five points among fully remote workers. By the third quarter, both advantages had narrowed to two points.
Employees also reported less clarity and personal support. The share strongly agreeing that they knew what was expected of them fell three points to 46%. Those strongly agreeing that a supervisor or someone else at work cared about them as a person fell from 40% to 37%. Gallup questioned whether communication and support from managers were keeping pace with the introduction of AI.
