Job satisfaction in the UK

29 July 2006 - Results from a new survey of over 1000 workers for The Work Foundation reveals strikingly positive attitudes towards work but also confirms that work remains simply a way of making a living for many people. Commissioned as part of The Work Foundation's campaign for "good work" the study found most people feel their work has got better since the beginning of their working lives.

The survey found:

• 60 per cent said their satisfaction with work had increased, 31 per cent felt it had gone down, and 8 per cent said it had stayed the same.
• 78 per cent said they found their work 'stimulating and challenging' (55 per cent agreeing strongly with this statement) and 69 per cent said their work was a 'source of personal fulfilment'.
• 86 per cent did not agree with the statement 'I regard my work as meaningless' with only nine per cent saying they agreed (the remainder did not express a view).
• Just over half (51 per cent) said their work was 'a means to an end'. People with lower pay and lower skills tended to be less satisfied with their jobs.
• Over three-quarters of respondents describe themselves as 'very satisfied' (35 per cent) or 'quite satisfied' (43 per cent) with their current jobs; 10 per cent were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied; 6 per cent were 'quite dissatisfied'; and 5 per cent very dissatisfied.

Will Hutton, chief executive of The Work Foundation, said:

"Traditionally, work has been seen as purely a grim economic necessity, which there is no getting out of, and little more to be said about. Our survey indicates that that view is no longer a fair reflection of how people feel. Today, work is increasingly thought of as a source of fulfilment, an important aspect of life that matters to people in a very personal way."

Other key findings in the survey included:

• Women are slightly more likely to be satisfied with their job compared to men
• The over-55s are more likely to be satisfied with their job compared to younger workers, especially those aged 16-34 years.
• Managers and professionals are more likely to be satisfied compared with other occupational groups.
• People earning over £50 000 per year are more likely to be satisfied than those who earn less.

Will Hutton said:

"Employers and organizations are going to have to think much harder about the jobs they offer. The wage packet still matters, but there are crucially important psychological, social, and personal dividends from work, too - it is about money and meaning. Well over two thirds of workers regard work as a source of personal fulfilment to them, but only a very few employers ever succeed in making the most of this huge personal appetite for work that more and more people have."

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