Status: 13.01.2024, 11:22 a.m.
By: Natalie Hull-Deichsel
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Surveys repeatedly show that it is by no means only the salary that is decisive for whether employees are happy in their job. Which criteria are still decisive at the moment.
While a large part of the grandparents' and, to some extent, their parents' generation focused on income and financial security at work, nowadays it is also idealistic values that determine the choice of job. According to the career bible, these include a positive, motivating working atmosphere, the company's philosophy and values, flexible working hours with home office, compatibility of family and career as well as further training opportunities – aspects that can ultimately make the difference and make employees happier on the job. But appreciation – on a monetary basis and on the part of the supervisor and in dealing with colleagues – is also central for employees of all ages to become happier at work.
Happier at work: Those who feel valued by their superiors are more motivated and satisfied
Appreciation at work is a decisive factor in the feeling of happiness, which employees repeatedly name in surveys. © YAY Images/Imago
Employees who are not satisfied in their jobs are often less motivated after a short period of time, which in turn can lead to a decrease in their performance. Satisfaction in the workplace is an important basis for good performance. For example, if you are underpowered or overwhelmed and feel permanently stressed, you run the risk of developing burnout.
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In particular, it was the time of the Corona pandemic that posed major challenges for many employees and increased general dissatisfaction in the workplace, as a survey by Robert Half shows. As part of the survey, 2021 office workers were surveyed in November 750 and it was found that before the pandemic, 2019 percent of employees still felt satisfied to very satisfied in 65, while two years later it was only 53 percent. 20 percent of the participants even stated that they were rather dissatisfied or even very dissatisfied.
What is striking is that younger (56 percent) and older employees (68 percent) in particular feel satisfied, while the age groups in between tend to feel less so. This is also due to the mental strain of childcare and the lack of work-life balance that families felt exposed to, especially during the Corona pandemic.
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Becoming happier at work: Survey reveals top 3 criteria for employee dissatisfaction
The results of the "Job Happiness Study 2022" by the opinion research institute forsa, which was compiled on behalf of XING, show the top 3 drivers of dissatisfaction among employees in Germany. In October 2022, 3,042 employed persons were surveyed as part of a representative online survey:
- 21 percent of employees in Germany feel undervalued or not valued
- 25 percent feel that their pay is not fair
- 31 percent are permanently stressed at work
Experts advise companies to take such tendencies seriously, especially with regard to the resulting employee turnover. After all, those who are dissatisfied are generally more open to changing jobs. Employees who are satisfied in their job, on the other hand, identify more with their own employer and are less willing to change jobs.
What also stands out in this study is that 73 percent of older employees over the age of 56 are more likely to say they are satisfied in their current job – compared to only 18 percent of the 25 to 65-year-old age group.