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- 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer: Trust and the Crisis of Grievance | Edelman Trust Institute (2025)
2025 Edelman Trust Barometer: Trust and the Crisis of Grievance | Edelman Trust Institute (2025)
What happens when 6 in 10 people feel the system is rigged? The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer reveals a global trust crisis, with 61% feeling left behind by institutions. Business remains the most trusted—and most accountable—actor. This article explores how leaders can rebuild trust at work through fairness, inclusion, and ethical performance. This article unpacks the roots of grievance, the implications for workforce sentiment, and the strategic levers businesses must pull to rebuild trust and drive societal progress.
Tanguy Dulac
March 26, 2025
TRUST @ WORK
2025 Edelman Trust Barometer: Trust and the Crisis of Grievance | Edelman Trust Institute (2025) | What happens when 6 in 10 people feel the system is rigged? The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer reveals a global trust crisis, with 61% feeling left behind by institutions. Business remains the most trusted—and most accountable—actor. This article explores how leaders can rebuild trust at work through fairness, inclusion, and ethical performance. This article unpacks the roots of grievance, the implications for workforce sentiment, and the strategic levers businesses must pull to rebuild trust and drive societal progress.
📊 DID YOU KNOW?
Did you know that 61% of people worldwide now feel betrayed by institutions they once trusted—believing that business, government, and the wealthy serve only themselves, not society?
👀 DID YOU SEE?
✨ OVERVIEW
The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer reveals a world increasingly driven by distrust and disillusionment. Grievance—the belief that institutions harm ordinary people while favouring the elite—has become a dominant global sentiment. The survey, spanning 28 countries and over 33,000 respondents, shows that this sentiment reshapes how people perceive trust, legitimacy, and leadership. Particularly alarming is the growing approval of hostile activism among younger generations, driven by economic insecurities, perceived injustices, and eroding social contracts. While businesses still enjoy relatively high trust levels, this trust is conditional and fragile, especially among the most aggrieved populations. The report calls on business leaders to act decisively, ethically, and inclusively, using their platform to meet performance goals and rebuild societal cohesion. Trust is no longer earned through messaging—it must be restored through meaningful action.
🧩 CONTEXT
The crisis of grievance did not emerge overnight. Institutional failures have left deep scars from the 2008 financial crisis to the COVID-19 pandemic and global political instability. Economic inequality has widened, and perceived fairness has deteriorated. The rich are increasingly seen as selfish and extractive—67% believe they don’t pay their fair share of taxes. Meanwhile, technological disruption and offshoring are intensifying job insecurity, with 63% of employees fearing job loss due to automation or foreign competitors. These compounding pressures have led to a widespread belief that the system is rigged, especially among low-income and young populations. As a result, grievance is fuelling distrust, reducing economic optimism, and increasing polarisation. It’s not just a social issue—it’s a strategic one.
🔍 WHY IT MATTERS
🧱 Institutional Fragility
↳ Grievance undermines trust across all institutions—Individuals with high grievance levels are far more likely to distrust business, media, NGOs, and government. Trust drops by up to 21 percentage points in business and 34 points in AI among these individuals.
↳ Trust inequality widens social division—High-income groups are significantly more trusting than low-income ones, with a 13-point gap in trust overall and 16-point gaps across institutions like business and government.
🔄 Societal and Workplace Consequences
↳ Grievance triggers a zero-sum mindset—People with high grievances are 2x more likely to believe that gains for others come at their loss, undermining collaboration, inclusion, and cohesion at work and in society.
↳ The crisis affects workforce dynamics—Fear of discrimination is at an all-time high, with 63% globally worrying about experiencing prejudice. Meanwhile, employer trust has declined across 22 markets, reversing years of progress.
💡 KEY INSIGHTS
↳ Grievance is not a fringe sentiment—it’s the new global baseline—The sense of grievance spans all regions and demographics, with majorities in 23 of 26 countries reporting moderate or high grievance.
↳ Trust and optimism rise—and fall—together—As institutional trust increases, economic optimism rises and grievance declines. Among high-trust individuals, 75% feel optimistic about their economic future, compared to just 8% among the low-trust group.
↳ The workplace remains the last bastion of societal civility—Despite declining trust, 80% of employees believe businesses must nurture civility to address polarisation. Businesses are also expected to provide good-paying jobs and invest in reskilling, regardless of grievance levels.
↳ CEOs still have the mandate to lead beyond profit—Across all grievance levels, around 76–79% believe CEOs are justified in addressing societal issues if it improves business performance or has a high impact.
🚀 ACTIONS FOR LEADERS
↳ Anchor stakeholder trust in equitable business outcomes—Leaders must demonstrate tangible benefits to all stakeholder groups, especially those left behind. Fair wages, equitable policies, and visible impact matter.
↳ Tackle systemic drivers, not just symptoms—Rather than respond reactively to grievances, leaders should address inequality, perceived injustice, and exclusion from opportunity.
↳ Build cultures of respectful dialogue—Create environments where employees can engage in civil, constructive conversations on complex topics. Doing so builds trust, connection, and resilience.
↳ Align ethics with business performance—CEOs must act where they can make a real difference—and show how these actions contribute to business value and societal good.
↳ Invest in skills, jobs, and community roots—From reskilling to community employment, business is mandated to enable a better future for all—even among those most distrustful.
🔗 CONCLUSION
The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer clarifies one truth: the world is navigating a profound trust crisis rooted in grievance. This is not a communications issue—it's a systemic failure of perceived fairness and opportunity. This moment allows business leaders to rebuild trust through ethical leadership, inclusive growth, and human-centred strategies. Trust is no longer an abstract value but a measurable, strategic lever for resilience, reputation, and results. The cost of inaction is rising polarization, workforce disengagement, and eroded legitimacy. The opportunity? A more sustainable, inclusive, and trusted future is built through responsible leadership.
Trust will define the next decade of business as its most significant risk or its greatest asset.
🌟 KEY TAKEAWAY
To turn grievance into growth, leaders must rebuild trust not through promises but through performance anchored in fairness, empathy, and shared progress.