In the first half of 2026, 31% of U.S. employees were engaged at work, unchanged from 2025. 18% were actively disengaged from work;
Top-line trends are stagnant. Underneath, the workplace continues to rapidly change as AI becomes part of employees’ daily work.
Organizations are investing heavily in AI implementation to improve employee productivity and efficiency, but Gallup’s latest findings suggest that access alone doesn’t make or break the employee experience. When leaders implement AI with clear expectations, a thoughtful implementation plan, and active support from managers, employee engagement increases significantly. These conditions will help employees understand what is expected of them, how AI fits into their jobs, and how they should use it.
Gallup defines employee engagement as an employee’s involvement and enthusiasm for their job or workplace. Engagement reached a recent high of 36% in 2020, but fell to 31% in 2024 and remained there through the first half of 2026. Each percentage point change represents approximately 1.6 million full-time or part-time employees in the United States. Since 2020, the U.S. workforce has lost 8 million engaged employees.
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The cost of low engagement remains high. When employees are disengaged or disengaged, workplace productivity is lost, costing the U.S. economy an estimated $2 trillion annually. Since 2020, the declines have been most pronounced for young workers, hybrid workers, and managers. These same groups are among those currently adapting to one of the most significant technological changes in recent decades.
Clarity of expectations improved, but apathy remained
Despite the widespread decline in workplace engagement, one aspect of workplace engagement has recently improved. In H1 2026, 49% of employees strongly agreed that they know what is expected of them at work, an increase of 2 percentage points from 47%. This will be welcome news after 2025. Gallup reported that over the past five years, the biggest decline in engagement was in employee clarity of expectations and feeling cared for at work.
Clarifying expectations is the foundation for building an engaged team. Without it, employees won’t have a common standard for success. While recent increases are in the right direction, employee clarity remains well below its 2015 peak of 61%.
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A recent increase in clear expectations was offset by a slight decline in the percentage of employees who felt their opinions mattered and felt connected to their organization’s purpose. These declines indicate that the problem of isolation continues. While employees may have some clarity about what they should be doing, many still have little sense of why their work is important or whether their opinions will influence how the work is done.
Clarity improves task execution, but engagement also requires employees to believe that their contributions matter, their opinions matter, and that their work is connected to a greater purpose.
When the work environment is right, AI can lead to increased engagement
Employee engagement is 6 percentage points higher in organizations that implement AI than in organizations that do not.
This difference may not just come from the use of AI. It may also reflect the types of industries that are implementing AI, particularly in the technology, finance and insurance, and professional services sectors. Yet, within organizations that use AI, employees who use AI at least weekly are 8 points more engaged than those who use it less frequently. In these cases, the use of AI is more clearly a driving factor.
The biggest difference, however, comes when organizations provide direction on the use of AI. Employees whose organizations provide a clear plan for integrating AI are 15 points more engaged than those without a plan. Employees who said their managers actively supported their teams’ use of AI had a 48% engagement rate, compared to 30% of employees who didn’t, an 18-point difference.
When organizations adopt AI and employees meet all three criteria (frequent AI use, clear integration plans, and proactive manager support), employee engagement increases to 53%.
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For organizations looking to use AI to improve employee performance, the bottom line is clear. Having AI available is not the same as having a clear AI implementation plan. Leaders must define how employees should use AI, what outcomes matter, and where human judgment is essential.
Manager support is most important
The findings show that one factor is more strongly associated with employee engagement than any other: manager support.
Gallup consistently finds that managers are the primary way employees experience an organization. Even if AI changes the way we work, that won’t change. Managers translate organizational priorities into daily expectations. These will help employees understand where AI adds value in the workplace, where human judgment remains essential, and what good performance looks like as work evolves.
Employees who use AI frequently and have managers who actively support the use of AI are 14 points more engaged than the national average. Manager support for AI also increased by 4 points from Q1 to Q2 of 2026. This change may help explain the slight improvement in clarity of employee expectations in the first half of this year.
There are also practical benefits to improving communication with managers. Managers who actively support AI are likely to have ongoing conversations with employees about how to use the technology, where not to use it, and the most important outcomes. These conversations create clearer expectations and help employees move from experimenting with AI to using it in ways that improve their work.
Without that guidance, employees must interpret AI’s expectations themselves. While some people may use AI effectively, others may use it inconsistently, avoid it entirely, or apply it in ways that do little to improve performance.
These findings suggest that AI does not diminish the importance of management. Rather, it reinforces the value of managers who create clarity as work changes.
Efficiency and productivity claims require clear evidence
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Organizations often invest in AI to improve productivity and efficiency. Gallup’s findings suggest that the benefits gained from workplace AI will depend on both the technology and the workplace environment surrounding its use.
Among employees in organizations that use AI weekly or more, only 17% give it the highest rating for AI’s impact on productivity and efficiency. This rate increases significantly when employees experience situations that support effective AI integration.
Three patterns stand out.
- It’s important to use AI frequently. Employees who use AI weekly or more are much more likely to report significant productivity gains than those who use it less frequently: 24% vs. 5%.
- Manager support is even more important. Employees whose managers actively support the use of AI are much more likely to say AI improves the way they do their jobs: 33% vs. 9%.
- Employees report that they receive the greatest benefits when conditions are supportive. Employees who have a clear AI plan, use AI frequently, have the support of an active manager, and are proactive are nearly three times as likely to give AI the highest productivity rating than employees who use AI frequently overall (50% vs. 17%).
These findings suggest that positive attitudes toward AI alone are not enough. When leaders combine AI with clear expectations, effective management and work processes that enable employees to use technology in meaningful ways, organizations are more likely to see productivity gains.
What leaders should do next
Leaders can enhance their use of AI by focusing on four priorities.
- Clarify your expectations for AI.
Employees need to know where AI should and shouldn’t be used, and how managers will evaluate its use. Leaders should define expectations for AI by role, rather than just issuing broad corporate policies. - Enabling managers to coach the use of AI.
Manager support is most strongly tied to data engagement. Managers need practical guidance on how to discuss AI in weekly conversations, tie AI use to performance goals, and address employee concerns. - Incorporate AI into performance conversations.
AI should not sit outside performance management. Managers need to ask employees how AI will change their jobs, where it will help, where it will cause disruption, and what support they need to use AI effectively. - Track engagement and AI usage together.
Organizations should measure whether employees have a clear plan for AI, are using it frequently, and are supported by their managers. These conditions differentiate basic adoption from meaningful integration.
conclusion
US employee engagement remained low at 31% in the first half of 2026. At the same time, the use of AI is increasing, with many organizations considering it as part of how they engage with employees.
Gallup findings suggest that organizations can reap the greatest employee engagement benefits from AI when leaders use management techniques that create clear expectations, support meaningful work, and give employees a say in how their work is done. Gallup will continue to study how AI and the role of managers will evolve together. Organizations that combine AI integration with strong management practices will be able to achieve greater clarity, stronger engagement, and drive better performance outcomes.
Learn how to bridge the gap between AI investments and employee engagement.
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