This study utilized a mixed method sequential exploratory strategy in investigating the needs of the Filipino working population and the relationship between these needs and employee engagement. In the first phase, workers were interviewed to determine the needs that motivate them. In the second phase, a survey with 302 workers elicited four types of needs: job-related, career-related, organization-related, and familyrelated. Among these, family is a novel addition to the extant theories of work motivation in the West. The importance and presence of these four factors were all significantly correlated with employee engagement. Three models were tested to describe the importance and presence of needs as predictors of employee engagement. The best fitting model was the presence of needs as predictors of engagement. Among the needs, it was those related to the job that predicted employee engagement.