Companies pursuing workforce management initiatives to encourage a sense of satisfaction among their staff appear to be succeeding, with new research suggesting relatively high levels of workplace pride in the UK.

Hyphen, a recruitment solutions provider, published the results of a poll showing that more than half (58 per cent) of British workers are proud to be with their current employer.

The survey of 1,000 people found that those belonging to 'generation Y', who were born between the early 1980s and mid 90s, had the highest levels of job satisfaction, with nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) expressing pride in their work.

This is up from the 56 per cent of young employees who felt this way in the second quarter of last year but down from 72 per cent in January 2013.

Workplace fulfilment has been consistently high among women, 60 per cent of whom felt proud to be in their job in the latest survey, compared to 49 per cent a year ago.

Hyphen managing director Zain Wadee said it is important for managers to regularly communicate with employees and provide a sense of staff involvement in order to get the most out of their workforce.

"Engagement and workplace pride have a close relationship, and managers need to ensure they are providing a positive working environment that both engages and develops the workforce," he added.

"This will help create employees that feel part of the company's development and will have a demonstrable impact on retention of talent."

Research published by talent and career management firm Right Management last month suggested that low employee engagement and poor productivity will be the biggest human resources (HR) challenge facing British businesses in 2013.

Nearly a third (31 per cent) of the HR professionals surveyed cited these issues as a key concern, compared to the global