Are Over Half of Workers Really Dissatisfied with Their Jobs?

In this piece from Crown Ministries, I was surprised by the following statistic:

A new study says just 45% of Americans are satisfied with their jobs.

Really? I would have guessed maybe 60% or 70% would be satisfied (thus making 30% or 40% dissatisfied), but to see more that were dissatisfied than were happy, really shocked me.

They also list some of the reasons 55% of workers aren’t satisfied:

• The jobs they have aren’t very interesting. This could be a problem with not understanding your purpose and your calling versus making a living.
• Their salary is failing to keep up with inflation. People aren’t making financial progress, and it has been tough the last two years.
• Having to pay more for health insurance.
• More pressure because fewer workers are being asked to do the same amount of work.
• Stress with boss and co-workers. We spend a lot of time with the people at work, which requires good relationships.

I know how much it stinks to hate your job -- I've been there. A lot. In fact, I've probably spent close to half of my working career in jobs that I disliked. My "bad jobs" were mostly made that way by people. If you work with or for people you don't like, respect, and can't get along with (some people can't get along with anyone), then it can be a real downer for you.

But even though I disliked many of my jobs, I wouldn't say I was "dissatisfied" with them. Yes, they had their aches and pains, but they also had some great benefits (like good pay), so I'd say I've been satisfied with my jobs most of my career. Maybe my expectations were just too low, but I thought surely that most people were satisfied their jobs (even if the didn't like them). Maybe it's just semantics and "like" is equal to "satisfaction." Maybe people simply expect more from jobs these days. I'm not sure what the ultimate issue is.

That said, it really, really, really stinks to be in a job you don't like. It weighs down on you and seems to put a cloud over everything. It makes most of the rest of your life miserable as well.

I'm so thankful that I've finally found a job I love that pays well and has great people to work with and for. I hope to stay here a long time. I do NOT take it for granted that I work someplace special -- I'm so thankful for it.

How about you? Are you satisfied with your job? Do you like it? If not, what are your plans for the future -- simply putting up with it or are you looking to make a move?

Comments

[Noadi]

I think maybe it's the satisfied=like thing. This poll seems very much like a false dichotomy. It's satisfied or not, nothing in between where I'm sure many people fall.

[jim]

That poll citing 45% dissatisfaction may be bad science.

WashingtonPost article pointed out how that study contradicts two other mainstream polls on the topic: "In Gallup polls taken every August from 1989 to 2009, 85 percent to 94 percent say they were either completely or somewhat satisfied with their jobs. In the General Social Survey taken by University of Chicago researchers between 1972 and 2008, people who said they were very or moderately happy consistently range from 85 to 87 percent."

[jim]

I meant "45% satisfaction" not "45% dissatisfaction"

[vga]

I think the economy has an effect on people's satisfaction as well. I don't really love my job. It has its ups and downs but overall I guess its okay. Its by no means a calling or a passion for me.

But since the recession hit I no longer feel like I have any chance of advancing. New avenues have just dried up. Heck, I don't know if I'll have a job in a few months. So basically I'm showing up in order to pay the rent and sustain my otherwise less than extravagant lifestyle. Any sense of working for something greater is gone.

Kind of kills any sense of satisfaction doesn't it?

[Nate]

Hmmm - I like my job! I think I like it better this year because I offered to do some research on a new project my employer was interested in (e-learing videos/material). I did such a great job they created 2 new positions that pay really well for this work.

That all being said -- I just took a new job that gave me a 100% pay increase (double my income). I did this by leveraging what I had just accomplished for my current employer.

You will most likely have to switch jobs to get the big payoff VGA @4... If you are facing a layoff -- get moving!!!!!!! (I know it can be hard - but you can do it)!

[Rob @ dollars and doctrine]

I am actually doing a series on my blog this week on finding greater fulfillment at work (from a Christian perspective).

[garyatk]

I have never had a job that I enjoyed. That is why my wife and I have started a small business.

[seth]

"Their salary is failing to keep up with inflation. People aren’t making financial progress, and it has been tough the last two years."

Wow! Obviously people are spending more then they earn, but this makes me consider the Federal Government's stimulus plan. Seriously, why do we still support keynesian policies? A payroll tax cut would have been much better policy. Anything would have been better policy.

[Kerry]

There's a lot over at my job. It's a school job while I do school full-time, so as thankful as I am to be working, every day I work, I know why I'm in college. So I don't have to do that job for the rest of my life. I've been trying to find another job, but there's not really much open to students here. I think it's good I'm working it because I'm learning to appreciate the work that everyone else puts in, and I hope that will translate if I become a doctor.

[Meg]

I hate my job, but they pay me well-enough (I consider it combat pay). I'm sticking it out an socking away as much money as I possibly can while I can still put up with the job. I know I chose my field poorly by focusing on only the money and disregarding whether I would even like the work itself, but as long as I'm here, I might as well make the most of it.

[MasterPo]

You can have a job you like or a job that pays well. Rarely both.

In this economy just be glad you have a job that pays better than min wage!

[Noel]

I review my job satisfaction with my 5 fingers.

1. Is my pay good?
2. Can I gain knowledge and experience if I'm working here?
3. Colleagues and co-workers
4. Company's management, direction & vision
5. Good career prospect?

If more than 3 fingers down, is time for me to start look for other opportunity.

[Financial Solutions]

I have started a small business, because I have never had a job that I enjoyed.

[kenyantykoon]

i have done jobs i hate just for the money. the most recent was one that i worked 13 to 15 hours a day 7 days a week for almost nothing(in the retrospect)!! i hated it but after some time you get numbed and work like a damned robot(i think that this is the part that i hated most about it). i am for the opinion that one should enjoy their work and i have started a biz with that as the most important part of it. while i havent seen results, i have a feeling in my gut that it will work out to my favor.

[unavocis]

I agree with you that there is a difference between being dissatisfied and being in a job that is soul crushing. I'm currently in the latter, and I've blogged about what I'm doing about it. Of course situations vary, but while we can't always up and move to another, better (or even comparably paying) job, especially in this economy, I believe that in many cases, it is us who keeps us in a state of perpetual unhappiness, at least emotionally, regarding our supposed lack of alternatives. For ex., last night I was talking to a friend and coworker who said she was giving up hope re: finding another position. I told her that nothing had happened to make her circumstances less hopeful than the day before, so why was she allowing it to affect her so. We all have those down days. It's normal. And sometimes we need a good cry. But when we went over, for the tenth time, it seems, all of her options, things she could do on the side, teaching, tutoring, starting the side business she's always wanted to do, and all I got was "Well, yeah," then I really can't do much more. All I can do is be a friend, provide a shoulder, and give her a tissue. Sometimes we have to help ourselves. And that's the lesson I've learned (am still learning).

[Budgeting in the Fun Stuff]

I'm satisfied with my job. Is it my dream job? Nope, but it isn't soul crushing either.

My husband hates his job and is getting a masters just to leave. With any luck, he will be a happy camper next semester.

I don't personally know anybody who loves their job. Everybody I know is either okay with what they do or hates it with a passion usually reserved for star-crossed lovers...

[billyjobob]

I don't hate my job. But I don't really like it either. I work in health care and my job is always in demand. The good things about my job are that, I've always felt secure. I've never had to worry about being laid off or out of a job.It pays ok...50 to 60k a year. And I could live anywhere in the USA and find employment quickly. Mostly I'm probably just bored with it. I've been doing the same thing for over 30 years now. I'm 53,and I plan to quit in a couple of years. I probably won't do anything for at least 2 years after that. Take time to smell the roses as they say. Then, if I do get so bored that I need to find a job. I'll try to look for something different to do, or if I can't find anything that suits me, I'll maybe work part time doing the same ole stuff (very part time).

[MasterPo]

Kenny - MasterPo agrees. However, if push came to shove better to have a good paying though loathed job than a low paying but happy job.

Think about it.

[Old Limey]

I loved the job I had as a structural engineer in aerospace from 1960 until I retired in 1992.
These are some of the reasons.
1) Once I got my MS in 1963 and had moved up the ladder a couple of notches I was able to switch from doing fairly mundane analysis into helping to produce the software that the other engineers used to do their analysis. I then found the work highly creative, very stimulating, and all consuming. We also worked closely with universities, giving them small research grants and bringing aboard the latest analysis techniques that enabled our engineers to be more productive.
2) The defense business was going great because of the cold war so the company was doing well, expanding rapidly, and the work was interesting and challenging with good annual merit raises.
3) My colleagues were great guys and we learned a lot from each other by interchanging and sharing ideas.
4) I was only 7 miles from work and had a troublefree, fast commute and was able to buy a brand new 4br. 2ba. home in a nice development for just under $27K.
5) The company allowed you to set your own hours and as long as you put in the hours you were supposed to and your job performance was great they didn't mind how you set up your schedule. I always put in more hours than were on my time card and I used to look forward to going to work every day.
6) The company was very fair in its treatment of employees. If layoffs were necessary they weren't done on the basis of seniority but on the basis of your value to the department. The company tried everything possible to avoid letting good employees go, sometimes they would be transferred elsewhere in the division, or as a last resort even offered a transfer to another division in the same company, or even out of state.
7) Vacation policy was very flexible. You started at 2 weeks and then added another week every 5 years up to a maximum of 5 weeks. You could also carry forward vacation time into future years.

In summary I think that you need to have a good education and good skills to be happy in your work. It's hard for me to see how employees such as checkers, baggers, waiters, store clerks, carpenters, plumbers, truck drivers, assembly line workers etc. can find their work challenging, creative and satisfying. The best rewards come to those that are either self employed or help their company produce better and newer products, win contracts, and help increase company profits and revenues.

[KH]

I like my job (it's basically the dream job in my field) and it pays well. I feel very grateful for my good position, which is very secure.

Still, it's highly stressful at times and at least a few times a year ramps up into killer hours (120 hr/wk) for a few weeks--which is hard to do at my age and since I'm a divorced Mom it's especially hard to figure out how to take care of my kids during these times. There's only such much daycare kids can stand, you know?

Another big stress is dealing with the massive paperwork requirements and layers of administrative oversight that didn't exist when I started out in this position 20 years ago--while still being expected to turn out the same amount or more of actual product. I often have to waste my entire "workday" in meetings and then work all night to get my actual work done!

[Rich Avery]

@FinancialSolutions makes a great point. I think a growing number of dissatisfied people will choose to start their own business, either full or part-time.