Sunday scaries took a gap year… Job satisfaction among US workers reached 62% last year according to a new survey — the highest since analysts began tracking the metric in the late ’80s. Last year the “Great Resignation” saw a record 51M Americans quit their jobs, but the “Great Reshuffling” saw workers move to positions with higher pay, more flexible schedules, and better benefits. That may have contributed to a happy(er) workforce.
Change-seekers: The highest job-satisfaction levels came from people who chose to switch jobs during the pandemic and workers with hybrid schedules.
Remote equilibrium: Work-life balance and workload were the metrics that saw the biggest #satisfaction jump since 2021. Flexible schedules helped give rise to the “whenever economy.”
Drop likely: The survey was conducted last fall, before mass layoffs in the tech sector and before many RTO mandates were hardened.
WFH is down, but not out… Currently, about 35% of workers whose jobs can be done remotely are full-time WFHers — down from 2020’s 55%, but up drastically from just 7% prepandemic. While more flexible schedules have boosted happiness, sector leaders like JPMorgan, Disney, and Amazon want workers to find their joy in IRL conference rooms. Despite almost 30K employees signing a petition against the biz’s three day/week RTO mandate, Amazon in March opted to stick with the directive.
Satisfaction not guaranteed… While job satisfaction has been rising since 2010, many employees remain locked out of key opportunities that increase happiness. Last year, women reported less satisfaction than men in every benchmark, while 40% of workers in the lowest income quartile had no paid sick or vacation time.