-Angela
Most Americans Are Unhappy At Work
Are you feeling satisfied with your job? If
not, you are among the majority of Americans—52.3%—who are unhappy at
work, according to a new report by the Conference Board, the New York-based nonprofit research group.
Every year since 1987, the Board has run a job satisfaction survey. Nearly three decades ago, 61.1% of workers said they liked their jobs. That number has slid over time, reaching an all-time low in 2010 following the Great Recession, when only 42.6% of workers said they were satisfied in their jobs. It has been ticking back up since then but rose only .4% since last year.
The survey asks workers how they feel about various parts of their experience, including job security, wages, promotion policy, vacation policy, sick leave, health plan and retirement plan. On all of those measures, workers were happier in 1987 than they are now.
The only exceptions: physical environment and quality of equipment. But there were only small gains in those categories. Some 54.6% liked their physical environment in 1987 versus 56.4% today, and 54.7% liked their equipment in 1987, compared to less than a percentage point more today, 55.2%. The report’s authors speculate that the increase in telecommuting offers a partial explanation, as people prefer working at home to being in the office and employers are responding by rethinking and improving equipment and workspaces.
I’m surprised that the equipment number isn’t higher, given how much faster and more powerful computers are today versus the ‘80s, when some of us remember those big, clunky, slow machines. But maybe we expect more from our computers these days and at least at Forbes, my Dell desktop crashes more frequently then I’d like and more often than that slow but reliable Compaq I used in the early days.
As the prospects for long-term work with the same employer have eroded and employees have been saddled with ever-higher health plan deductibles and payroll deductions, the two categories where workers’ satisfaction fell the most were job security and health plan, both declining by at least 11 points since 1987.
Every year since 1987, the Board has run a job satisfaction survey. Nearly three decades ago, 61.1% of workers said they liked their jobs. That number has slid over time, reaching an all-time low in 2010 following the Great Recession, when only 42.6% of workers said they were satisfied in their jobs. It has been ticking back up since then but rose only .4% since last year.
The survey asks workers how they feel about various parts of their experience, including job security, wages, promotion policy, vacation policy, sick leave, health plan and retirement plan. On all of those measures, workers were happier in 1987 than they are now.
The only exceptions: physical environment and quality of equipment. But there were only small gains in those categories. Some 54.6% liked their physical environment in 1987 versus 56.4% today, and 54.7% liked their equipment in 1987, compared to less than a percentage point more today, 55.2%. The report’s authors speculate that the increase in telecommuting offers a partial explanation, as people prefer working at home to being in the office and employers are responding by rethinking and improving equipment and workspaces.
I’m surprised that the equipment number isn’t higher, given how much faster and more powerful computers are today versus the ‘80s, when some of us remember those big, clunky, slow machines. But maybe we expect more from our computers these days and at least at Forbes, my Dell desktop crashes more frequently then I’d like and more often than that slow but reliable Compaq I used in the early days.
As the prospects for long-term work with the same employer have eroded and employees have been saddled with ever-higher health plan deductibles and payroll deductions, the two categories where workers’ satisfaction fell the most were job security and health plan, both declining by at least 11 points since 1987.
Recommended by Forbes
What makes employees happiest at work? “Interest in work,” which 59% said satisfied them and “people at work,” which 60.6% said they liked.
What worries workers most: layoffs. Even though hiring has picked up, only 46.6% of employees say they feel satisfied with their job security, compared to 48.5% before the recession. That’s way down from the 59.4% who said they felt they had job security in 1987.
Finally the report has some interesting data comparing men’s and women’s satisfaction at work. Men are happier in their jobs, with 47.8% saying they’re satisfied versus 46.3% of women. There is also a sign that the glass ceiling persists, observes the report, shown in the differing satisfaction about promotion and compensation. Among men, 26.1% say they’re satisfied with their promotion prospects versus 21.4% of women and 38.3% of men are happy with their wages versus 34.3% of women.
The Conference Board relied on Nielsen, which conducted a mail survey of 5,000 households and got responses from 1,673 workers.
No comments:
Post a Comment