Frontline workers make up the majority of the global workforce, but they often feel less supported than office-based peers. Leaders must act with empathy to address the challenges frontline teams face head-on.
Blaise Radley
Editorial Strategist
Workday
Frontline workers make up 82% of the U.S. workforce and nearly 2.7 billion people around the world. From doctors, nurses, and delivery drivers to retail associates and manufacturing staff, they shape brands' reputations and are the people customers see, hear, and rely on every day.
Yet despite playing a pivotal role across industries, challenges faced by the frontline workforce remain significant: safety risks, mental health pressures, pay inequities, technology gaps, and unclear opportunities for career advancement.
When these challenges are not adequately addressed, they contribute to higher turnover and create workforce gaps that negatively impact performance. To ensure ongoing business success, leaders must be proactive in ensuring working conditions are suitable, work-life balance needs are met, and that employee concerns can be voiced safely.
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56% of organizations are experiencing higher-than-average frontline turnover, and 49% expect it to increase in the near future.
Workday research uncovered that 56% of organizations are experiencing frontline turnover at a higher rate than the historical average. Of those in that group, 49% expect it to increase in the future. As frontline workers leave their roles in search of greater flexibility, better pay and benefits, and lower stress on the job, employers are grappling with what's been dubbed the frontline gap.
At a high level, the frontline gap is driven by a disconnect between the critical role essential workers play in business success and the level of support and cultural connection they experience at work. When that divide goes unaddressed, it becomes harder for organizations to maintain trust and cohesion, creating additional risks for retention, performance, and long-term resilience.
More than ever, recognizing the challenges faced by employees in frontline roles and leading them with empathy, support, and empowerment is critical.
The problems faced by frontline workers differ in nature from those seen in office or remote work environments. Frontline work demands physical presence and consistent adaptability, leaving employees with less flexibility in managing their day-to-day lives and higher levels of stress at work.
These are the top six challenges reported by frontline employees about their current work experience:
1. Safety in high-risk environments
2. Mounting burnout and mental health strain
3. Instability in pay, scheduling, and staffing
4. Limited career mobility and advancement
Frontline staff in industries like healthcare, manufacturing, and logistics routinely face hazards that put their health and operational continuity at risk. Extended shifts, repetitive physical labor, and exposure to physical danger contribute to higher injury rates and long-term fatigue.
Workday research found safety risks are one of the biggest areas impacted by the high turnover in frontline roles, and they affect frontline work at a higher rate than other workplace environments (32% for frontline vs. 25% for the overall sample).
The conditions faced by workers during the COVID-19 pandemic heightened awareness of these hazards, but evolving compliance standards and limited resources still make safety risks a persistent challenge.
High-pressure roles expose frontline workers to constant stress from demanding customers, crisis conditions, and long working hours. Burnout is another top challenge identified by frontline leaders, with women in frontline roles 50% more likely than men to report declines in well-being.
Beyond individual health, employee burnout can also disrupt business continuity. High stress and exhaustion contribute to absenteeism, lower productivity, and strained customer interactions, all of which weaken organizational performance.
Frontline employees report that compensation pressure and the search for better pay and benefits is the top reason they leave their roles. At the same time, inconsistent scheduling and understaffing often make it harder to balance personal and professional responsibilities, creating long-term dissatisfaction beyond pay alone.
These challenges—financial strain, unstable scheduling, and lack of adequate staffing—can combine to make frontline work feel unsustainable long-term for many employees.
A recent survey of 7500+ frontline workers found that 87% weren't sure if their company's culture applied to them.
Workers in frontline roles often feel disconnected from their company culture and unsure of their potential career paths within the organization. One recent survey of 7500+ frontline workers found that 87% weren't sure if their company's culture applied to them, and just 13% could see a path for career advancement.
When employees can’t see how their jobs fit in with overall companies values and culture or how their career might progress at their company, they're more likely to look elsewhere for better opportunities.
Frontline employees frequently lack the same digital tools available to office-based peers. Employees without adequate technology to perform their role are 3x more likely to say they aren't receiving equitable treatment with other workers. Issues such as inadequate HR access, outdated systems, and communication barriers compound inequity and restrict productivity.
The rise of AI has called additional attention to technology gap challenges on the front line. A study from Boston Consulting Group found that when strong leadership support exists for frontline AI adoption, positive sentiment toward it rises by 40%. Unfortunately, only a quarter of frontline employees feel they receive that support from their current employers.
Frontline turnover rates remain at crisis levels. With more than half of companies seeing higher-than-normal attrition and replacement costs escalating (estimates vary dramatically, but the cost to replace a single employee can range from 30% to 200% of their annual salary), attrition significantly impacts financial stability for both employers and employees. Beyond financial implications, high churn also disrupts continuity of service and can lead to lower customer satisfaction.
In order to reduce these costs, it’s critical that businesses enhance frontline worker experiences. That means ensuring workers receive adequate remuneration, suitable health care options, and acknowledging that they play a crucial role in the company’s performance.
Frontline employees without adequate technology in their roles are 3x more likely to feel they aren’t receiving equitable treatment.
Organizations that depend on frontline employees cannot afford to overlook their needs. Leaders must take specific and actionable steps that address the everyday realities of frontline work. The following strategies outline what you can do now to strengthen your frontline employee experience and build long-term resilience across your teams.
Frontline employees with a strong sense of belonging are twice as likely to stay with their employer. In other words: Strong support for employee well-being translates to higher employee retention and engagement long-term.
It's essential to move beyond ad-hoc and surface-level perks and integrate well-being into the fabric of daily operations. Equip your managers with the tools and skills to have regular conversations about workload and stress, and open clear and confidential channels for employees to share their concerns.
Even modest structural changes—like building recovery breaks into long shifts—can demonstrate that well‑being is a true organizational priority.
Scheduling demands and inflexibility are one of the most taxing parts of working in frontline roles. The nature of frontline work makes it impossible to eliminate all of the rigidity involved in scheduling and shift hours, but leaders can make real improvements to the employee experience by addressing what they can control and communicating effectively about it.
First, it's important to note that flexibility comes in different forms. Frontline workers reported to Workday that they consider flexibility to encompass choices in when they work, how they get their work done, training and development opportunities, work location, and benefits.
Involving employees in discussions about how these aspects of their work are organized, giving them options when possible, and being open and transparent about when options are not available goes a long way in alleviating stress and dissatisfaction related to this aspect of the work environment.
When employees are given opportunities to gain new skills and pursue career growth within an organization, they feel more connected and engaged in their work. Workday research found frontline leaders are already ahead—49% have invested in training and development compared to 36% overall.
Training and development can be offered in a number of ways, from mobile-first training modules that can be completed during downtime on the job to more comprehensive upskilling programs directly linked to advancement opportunities within the company.
Forty-nine percent of frontline leaders are investing in training and development for their front line, compared to 36% overall.
Progress is happening when it comes to more equitable pay for front line workers, and in practice, there are ways to make equitable pay and recognition embedded parts of the workforce management strategy, including:
These types of best practices are key to making equitable pay a positive layer of the employee experience that makes workers feel valued and offsets unavoidable challenges and stressors in their work.
No one understands the employee experience and how it can be improved better than employees themselves. Smart frontline leaders recognize that mutually open channels for workplace communication play an essential part in making frontline workers feel heard and helping them succeed in their work.
Workday found that employees who are solicited for feedback at least monthly are 2.3x less likely to be looking to leave their jobs, and they're 2.5x more likely to recommend their employer to others.
When surveyed, employees communicated that they most preferred to give feedback weekly or monthly.
Leaders can encourage this with simple, consistent channels for input, like brief digital surveys, manager-led team huddles, or rotating focus groups. Building employee feedback into existing routines makes it feel natural, increases participation, and provides leaders with regular insights they can act on quickly.
The challenges frontline workers and leaders face are timely and interconnected. Issues of safety, mental health, compensation, access to technology, and retention shape the daily reality of the majority of the global workforce.
The most effective organizations are responding by building strategies grounded in empathy and reinforced by data. Leaders who understand what employees are telling them and translate that into meaningful action are improving engagement, reducing turnover, and strengthening business outcomes.
Ultimately, creating a better frontline experience means recognizing these workers as a core driver of organizational resilience. By supporting, empowering, and equipping them with the resources they need, organizations can ensure stronger customer experiences today and sustained growth for the future.
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