Survey shows declining job satisfaction

Fewer than half of American workers like their jobs and another 1 in 5 think they will not be with the same employer next year.

The Conference Board said Tuesday a national survey of workers shows 45 percent says they are satisfied in their jobs. That is the lowest mark for the Conference Board worker satisfaction survey since the business group began conducting such polls in 1987.

In 1987, 61 percent of workers said they liked and were satisfied in their jobs.

“The downward trend in job satisfaction could spell trouble for the overall engagement of U.S. employees and ultimately employee productivity,” said Lynn Franco, consumer research director for Conference Board. Franco said the decline in job satisfaction cuts across age and income groups.

The survey also found that 22 percent of those surveyed don’t expect to be in the same job next year. The recession, credit and housing crunches have hit Southwest growth markets such as Phoenix, Riverside, Calif. and Las Vegas very hard.

The Phoenix area leads the nation in construction job losses and has also seen cuts in the financial services, communications and aerospace sectors. Major employers — including Honeywell Aerospace, Arizona State University and the Arizona Republic newspaper — have also furloughed or laid off workers.

The layoffs, pay cuts and uncertainty and public sentiment against Wall Street bailouts, foreign outsourcing and executive bonuses have all weighed against worker satisfaction in their jobs.

In 2005 (before the recession hit), 52 percent of workers said they were satisfied in their jobs. The 2010 survey found that only 36 percent of workers younger than 25 like their jobs.

Source: Phoenix Business Journal - by Mike Sunnucks