Ineffective, dated tools and IT systems waste nearly one day of the average Australian worker’s month and cost $13.7 billion annually, according to new figures that also found Australians worry more than overseas peers about automation, burnout, and anxiety.

Thirty-seven per cent of the respondents to SafetyCulture’s fourth annual Feedback from the Field: Time for Change report – which included 1,184 Australian frontline workers and 826 managers – said they are stuck using outdated tools and IT systems.

A third said they are forced to use too many tools and IT systems, while 30 per cent said their tools and IT systems are not fit for purpose – with 62 per cent not fully satisfied with their current systems.

The figures suggest that Australian workers are struggling more than their overseas peers – the survey included a global cohort of over 10,000 people across Australia, the UK, US, France, Germany, and Ireland – with the effects of lingering technical debt.

Yet the solution – for businesses to invest in new and more appropriate technology – seems to be no better, with Australian workers also the most likely to say they are concerned about the impact of new technologies like AI.

Forty-six per cent of Australian workers worry that their role will be automated in the future, compared with just 37 per cent globally – echoing recent predictions that staff shortages and rising costs could automate 2.7 million Australian jobs out of existence.

With IT spending recovering from last year’s pause – Gartner recently predicted that IT spending will grow 8.7 per cent from 2024 to 2025 as companies modernise legacy infrastructure and embrace generative AI (GenAI) tools – things may only get worse.

As managers focus IT spending on new technologies and workers continue to struggle with existing legacy tools, SafetyCulture Sam Byrnes warned that the disconnect was feeding corrosive cultures in many workplaces.

With 57 per cent admitting that their workplace breeds an ‘us versus them’ mentality between management and frontline workers, suggested improvements include better pay and benefits, more regular communication, and recognition for good performance.

“Frontline workers are telling us they feel unheard, over-stretched, and compromised,” he said, warning about the impact of the “strained relationship between employees and management that isn’t conducive to a healthy workplace culture or optimal outputs.”

Dissatisfaction feeding Australia’s ‘brain drain’

The survey results echo recent findings by analyst firm ADAPT, which found that Australian CIOs are “laser focused on modernising and simplifying their technology landscapes” – with 60 per cent of CIOs’ budgets earmarked for IT modernisation.

“It’s evident that there’s a strong push to ditch clunky, old systems that slow down progress and frustrate employees,” ADAPT head of analytics and insights Gabby Fredkin said, citing automation and AI’s role in “changing the game.”

Companies that fail to deal with their technical debt create problems down the road, SafetyCulture found, with dissatisfied employees reporting effects including lower motivation – cited by 40 per cent – and lower productivity, reported by 31 per cent.

This was having a direct impact on employees’ mental health, with 31 per cent saying the ongoing problems with workplace culture and tools were making them anxious – with 37 per cent flagging the impact of unreasonable expectations or burnout.

The impacts of dissatisfaction – including lower motivation and productivity – cost the average Australian worker an additional 6.59 hours per month, the study found, causing a further $15.8 billion hit to the Australian economy.

Such concerns were likely to directly affect a company’s ability to retain knowledge workers, with 32 per cent saying workplace dissatisfaction made them more likely to quit and find another job – ironically leaving employers to compensate with automation.

This problem is common across the world, but the survey suggests that Australian workers are particularly exposed – with 62 per cent admitting that knowledge sharing is ineffective in their organisation, compared with 54 per cent globally.

“Leaders,” Byrnes said, “are doing themselves and their people a huge disservice – not to mention taking a huge hit to the bottom line – by failing to understand frontline challenges, acknowledging and addressing issues, and communicating adequately.”

“Don’t let feedback fall on deaf ears.

“The cost of inaction is too high to entertain.”