Its employers needn't take flight to reveal distress (8)
I believe the answer is:
elevator
'its employers needn't take flight' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.
'to reveal distress' is the wordplay.
'distress' indicates anagramming the letters.
'to'+'reveal'='toreveal'
'toreveal' with letters rearranged gives 'ELEVATOR'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for elevator that I've seen before include "An American lift in building" , "Farm herd" , "part of tail muscle" , "I go up" , "Cage that is raised and lowered mechanically in a vertical shaft" .)