Further reflecting this overall upturn in positivity, the latest survey also found 50% of more than 1,000 HR professionals who took part in the survey think their organisation's performance is better than it was 12 months ago (up by 32% and 53% (up by 10%) say that their organisation's main focus for the next 12 months is growth.
As a broader indication of change, compared to January, nearly a fifth more respondents are looking to pay staff bonuses at the same level as previous years.
There are also optimistic gains on the job security front. Fewer UK employers are now planning to reduce staff levels in the next 12 months. While this is an improvement (down to 30% from 37% in January), this figure is still well above the global norm of 12%.
Drilling down further, UK intentions to increase staff are also slightly lower than last year. But balancing this out, 44% of respondents are planning to maintain staff levels in the next year.
This is a 10% increase from January's HR Reflections survey and a positive sign for the job market.
Kate Pritchard, director of ORC International's Employee Research division, said: "While money is not everything, this trend does seem to suggest that things may be looking up in the private sector.
"To give more money to employees, organisations must have more funds to spend, which points to the possibilities of continued growth and optimism going forward on a global level."
HR Reflections was conducted in July 2011. The survey was sent out to HR professionals, internal communications consultants and employee engagement specialists in the USA, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong.
The purpose of the survey was to understand their views on a range of organisational and HR issues, the current economic climate and their predictions in the next 12 months. 1,148 responses were received from a variety of different industries and sectors.
