Thailand’s worker engagement doubles in a decade: Gallup

BANGKOK, THAILAND — Employee engagement in Thailand has more than doubled over the past decade, reaching 34% in 2025 — up from just 14% in 2012 — according to Gallup’s latest State of the Global Workplace report.

That growth is the largest in Southeast Asia and ranks among the top five engagement gains of any country in the world since 2014.

Thailand leads Southeast Asia in workforce engagement

Thailand’s 34% engagement rate surpasses Southeast Asia’s regional average of 25% and the global average of 20%. Since 2014, when engagement stood at 15%, Thai workers have added 19 percentage points — more than any other country in the region.

Indonesia gained 18 points to reach 27%; Malaysia added 11 and Myanmar added 10.

“Thailand stands out globally as an employee engagement success story,” the Gallup report stated.

The steady gains seen there on this metric over the past decade surpass the gains seen in most other countries and place Thailand among the most engaged countries in Southeast Asia in 2025.

Economic investment and workforce development drove the shift

Thailand’s engagement growth reflects deliberate policy choices. Foreign direct investment has expanded into high-growth sectors like the digital economy, while the government has invested in workforce development to build foundational skills.

Sixty percent of Thai workers remain “not engaged” — a significant improvement from more than 80% a decade ago, but a sign that meaningful work remains ahead.

Actively disengaged employees now account for just 5%, down from a pandemic peak of 9% in 2021 and 2022. 

“The divergent longer-term trajectories of Thai employees’ wellbeing and engagement show that their life experiences have not changed in a uniform way over the past decade,” Gallup noted. 

The thriving rate — 41% in 2025 — still trails the 48% peak recorded in 2014.

For outsourcing and BPO companies evaluating Southeast Asia as a talent source, Thailand‘s trajectory matters. A workforce that has more than doubled its engagement rate over 13 years — backed by government investment in skills and a recovering labor market — represents a more stable, motivated pool for global operations.

With 56% of Thai employees now saying it’s a good time to find a local job, up from 32% during the pandemic, Thailand is positioning itself as a stronger contender for offshore work. As engagement increasingly factors into site-selection decisions, Thailand’s decade-long run has cleared a bar that few emerging markets have reached.