The Global State of Trust: How Leaders Can Overcome Grievance and Rebuild Confidence

Trust is eroding across institutions, societies, and workplaces, and the consequences are becoming harder for business leaders to ignore. Around the world, people are questioning whether the systems meant to support them are fair, transparent, and working in their interest. Increasingly, they are also feeling exploited by the rich and powerful. 

This widespread distrust has given rise to what researchers describe as a “crisis of grievance,” a persistent sense of frustration, unfairness, and loss of control that shapes how people view leaders, organizations, and each other. 

Scott Evans, Interim CEO at Edelman Canada, explored the scope of this challenge at Workplace Options’ Center for Organizational Effectiveness Summit: Building Workplace Trust. According to the 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer, trust in institutions—including government, media, and business—has declined across the globe, while fear, resentment, and disengagement have increased.  

At organizations worldwide, these negative emotions shape employee expectations, workplace relationships, and levels of engagement. Put simply, trust exists when people believe leaders are competent and honest, colleagues are reliable, and everyone is respected. Workers show they trust managers by asking for feedback, offering opinions, and sharing life changes that can affect productivity. They are confident that workload is evenly distributed, financial compensation is equitable, and leaders communicate authentically and transparently. Without that core confidence, employees question leadership’s motives and look for signs of unfair treatment.  

Today, senior leaders can no longer take employee confidence for granted. As faith in institutions continues to break down, it is imperative that executives build trust inside their organizations—and prevent grievance from taking root. 

Why Trust Is Breaking Down—and Why Grievance Is Rising 

Edelman research shows that lack of trust is not evenly distributed. Economic pressure, inequality, and perceived unfairness have created vastly different realities for different groups of workers. Income and economic security remain the strongest predictors of trust.