Most U.S. workers are very satisfied with their job, job security and working conditions but 60 percent say now is not a good time to find a job, a study of public opinion polls showed Tuesday.
The report by the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank, found America’s high job satisfaction has changed little over the past 25 years despite concerns about the job market or overall economy.
“There is no question that there is a lot of economic anxiety out there, but most workers who have jobs don’t fear they’re going to lose them and they are quite satisfied with them,” said Karlyn Bowman, who specializes in public opinion poll research for the institute.
Rather than conduct original surveys, Bowman looked at polls about job satisfaction conducted over the last 50 years by major polling groups like Gallup and Ipsos.
“The vast majority of workers are satisfied with most aspects of their jobs including their job security, their opportunities to move up, their co-workers, the flexibility of their hours, and their vacation time,” the study found.
A Gallup poll in August found 42 percent were completely satisfied with their job and 44 were somewhat satisfied. Only 14 percent said they were somewhat or completely dissatisfied.
A third said they loved their jobs, while 60 percent said they liked it. Only 9 percent said they disliked or hated their work.
About six in 10 said they would continue to work if they won $10 million in a lottery, little changed from past years.
A 2005 poll by Zogby International found 27 percent of people were not happy in their job and would like to change it, down from 32 percent who told Gallup that in 1955.
About 20 percent said they would like to fire their boss.
