The share of US workers who are “thriving” has fallen to a record low
The present and future appear less positive for many Americans.
In January 2009, when the Great Recession had upended the everyday working lives of millions of Americans, Gallup started measuring the well-being of US employees with its Life Evaluation Index. Over 15 years later, the results look bleaker than ever.
T̶H̶R̶I̶V̶E̶ SURVIVE TILL 25
According to the latest reading, from August, the share of American workers “thriving” — those who when given a scale of 1 to 10 rate their life at a 7 or higher and their future situation at 8 or above — dropped to the lowest point on record, at just 50%. As recently as 2021, 60% said the same.
Other employee-wellness indicators that Gallup tracks, like the share of people who reported feeling stressed, worried, or sad for “a lot of the day” yesterday, also ticked up in August, though they are down from the rates seen during the pandemic.
Despite the current Life Evaluation Index reading showing that American employees are feeling more positive on average than workers around the world, just 34% of whom slipped into the “thriving” category in 2023, inflation and plenty of issues besides are clearly weighing heavy on the US populace.
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