Jobs Does Higher Pay Make People Happier at Work

Jobs Does Higher Pay Make People Happier at Work It may be a cliché, but it bears remembering: Money doesn’t buy happiness, even in the workplace. When asked to define the factors that made them happiest at their jobs, the most common responses in a recent were “pride in one’s organization,” “feeling appreciated,” and “being treated with fairness and respect.” “It’s not just about money,” says Paul McDonald, senior executive director at staffing firm Robert Half, which conducted the survey of 12,000 workers in a dual effort with statistician Nic Marks (best known for his TED talk on happiness). Rather, McDonald says, the average employee appears to be motivated by “culture, respect and pride … all of which are free.” The survey, published Thursday, asked workers â€" both white and blue collar, up and down the company ladder â€" to rate their happiness level on a scale of 0 to 100. One interesting finding: Across industries, ages and experience levels, most employees are generally happy, coming in with an average survey response of 71. Looking for a job that will make you happier? Look for some of the other factors that correlated with high happiness scores. Job level: Not surprisingly, perhaps, senior executives reported the highest average happiness score (84.4), with managers (75.7) right behind them. Company size: People who work at companies with fewer than 10 employees scored a 76, while those at organizations with 10,000 or more employees scored a measly 67. Rewarding fields: Those in the “education and training” (74.6) and “marketing or creative” (73.9) fields reported the highest levels of on-the-job happiness. (Those in hospitality and food services, by contrast reported the lowest â€" a score of 67 on average.) Where pay did become a factor was in respondents’ feelings about being treated with fairness and respect. Workers were asked if they thought they were paid fairly â€" 55% said yes, 23% were neutral, and 22% said no. Video Player is loading.Play VideoPlayMuteCurrent Time  0:00/Duration  0:00Loaded: 0%Stream Type  LIVESeek to live, currently playing liveLIVERemaining Time  -0:00  SharePlayback Rate1xChaptersChaptersDescriptionsdescriptions off, selectedCaptionscaptions settings, opens captions settings dialogcaptions off, selectedAudio TrackFullscreenThis is a modal window. This video is either unavailable or not supported in this browser Error Code: MEDIA_ERR_SRC_NOT_SUPPORTED Technical details : No compatible source was found for this media. Session ID: 2019-12-31:e0a5ac29969a5da2bc276bcb Player Element ID: jumpstart_video_1 OK Close Modal DialogBeginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.TextColorWhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentBackgroundColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentTransparentWindowColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyTransparentSemi-TransparentOpaqueFont Size50%75%100%125%150%175%200%300%400%Text Edge StyleNoneRaisedDepressedUniformDropshadowFont FamilyProportional Sans-SerifMonospace Sans-SerifProportional SerifMonospace SerifCasualScriptSmall CapsReset restore all settings to the default valuesDoneClose Modal DialogEnd of dialog window.PlayMuteCurrent Time  0:00/Duration  0:00Loaded: 0%Stream Type  LIVESeek to live, currently playing liveLIVERemaining Time  -0:00  Playback Rate1xFullscreenClose Modal DialogThis is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button.Close Modal DialogThis is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. But the relationship between income and happiness is a weak one, Marks says. Previous research has shown that making enough to pay the bills and feel a sense of security contributes to one’s emotional well-being, he explains. But after a certain point â€" one widely circulated figure says $75,000 â€" an increase in income doesn’t equate to a rise in happiness. The Robert Half study suggests as much. “Work forms the structure of life â€" it gives it rhythm and meaning,” Marks says. “Good jobs nourish people. If you’re enjoying your job, you worry less about income.” Even if you’re happy at your job, of course, there’s always room for improvement. Despite the relatively high average scores, one-third of the employees polled indicated they were thinking about leaving their jobs in the next six months. If you’re one of those employees, McDonald suggests having a frank discussion with your boss about what can be done to boost your own happiness. But if she can’t increase your satisfaction, the research suggests, there are plenty of other employers who will be able to. For additional career tips and resume services, you can also visit Monster.com.