The index found that employee confidence hit 45.7% in October, compared to 51.9% a year ago.

Senior level employee confidence dropped 4.6 percentage points to 58.3%, the index said, with entry level employees at 46.4% and mid-senior level at 52.5%.

With a federal government shutdown currently in its second month, the index found that government and public administration employee confidence fell 0.4 percentage points in October to 44.4%.

Aerospace and defence, which includes the military, has seen the largest drop in employee confidence over the last year, down 7.9 percentage points to 49.8%.

Hotels and travel accommodation also fell three points month-over-month ahead of the festive travel season. 

The index is based on employee ratings collected by Glassdoor, covering the share of US full-time and part-time employees who report a positive six-month business outlook for their employer. The index is reweighted to account for changes in the platform and to achieve a nationally representative mix of employee ratings by industry.

Daniel Zhao, chief economist at Glassdoor, said: “October’s decline in employee confidence reflects how quickly economic uncertainty can ripple through the workforce. The government shutdown and mounting layoff fears have clearly shaken employee sentiment.

“Most striking is the growing anxiety among senior-level employees. When leadership loses confidence in their own business outlook, it often points to slower hiring and more restrained investment in the months ahead.”