People & Work 2026: a survey on today’s labour market
Work as a system of balances: what people are really telling us today
In recent years, work has become the place where very different expectations converge: income, stability, growth, identity, time, relationships. Reducing this complexity to a single buzzword – flexibility, wellbeing, work–life balance – risks giving a partial, if not misleading, picture.
The data from the report People & Work 2026, a survey carried out by AxL Spa, an Employment Agency, instead point to a more nuanced reading: today, work is seen as a system of balances, where professional life and personal life can no longer be separated, but cannot be simply overlapped either.
Work remains central, even when people seek balance
One key finding clearly emerges: despite increasingly frequent narratives about “disengagement” or a downsizing of work’s role, for most people their work experience still has a strong impact on self-esteem and mood.
Work has not become marginal. It has become more demanding.
It is not just a source of income, but a factor that shapes self-perception, one’s personal trajectory and the overall quality of life.
Balance, yes – but not as a slogan
Almost everyone surveyed says that compatibility between work and private life is important. Yet when we move from principles to concrete motivational drivers, the picture becomes more interesting.
Alongside balance, other factors emerge strongly: recognition of skills, quality of the work environment, and opportunities for growth. Work–life balance does not replace these elements; it holds them together. It is not an isolated request, but part of a broader demand for consistency.
In other words, balance is not a shortcut. It only works when it is embedded in a solid professional context.
When private life enters the workplace
One of the least discussed, yet most relevant, aspects is the weight of responsibilities outside work. The division of domestic tasks, family support, and caring responsibilities continue to have a concrete impact on career choices and on how people perceive their opportunities.
Here we see gender and generational differences, but above all a perception gap: what some experience as balance, others still experience as invisible effort. Work, even when it is described as “neutral”, interacts with social and cultural structures that are anything but neutral.
Growth remains a priority, but is not always supported
Another clear signal concerns learning and development. Many people say they are actively investing in their skills through courses or self-directed learning. Training is seen as a lever for employability, not as a “nice-to-have” benefit.
The critical issue is not a lack of individual motivation, but the inconsistency of organisational support. Professional growth is a widespread expectation, but it does not always find environments capable of supporting it in a structured way.
Technology and AI: cautious openness
When it comes to technology, the picture is also less polarised than public debate might suggest. Artificial intelligence arouses interest and curiosity, especially as a tool to support learning and job search. At the same time, there are concerns about automated screening and the possible reduction of the human role.
Rather than rejection or uncritical enthusiasm, what emerges is a call for transparency: understanding how these tools are used and how much room is left for the evaluation of individual potential.
A common thread: consistency
If there is one element that cuts across all these themes, it is the demand for consistency: between what organisations say and what people actually experience; between stated values and day-to-day practices; between formal policies and those perceived as truly effective.
Today, work is not a promise to be advertised, but an experience that needs to be sustained over time.
The People & Work 2026 report was created with this goal in mind: to offer a data-driven perspective that helps companies, professionals and decision-makers better understand the real dynamics of the labour market, going beyond simplifications and passing trends.