American workers generally feel secure in their jobs, and relatively few expect to look for a new position in the coming months, a Pew Research Center survey finds. But the study also suggests ambivalence in how U.S. workers view their jobs.
Job and pay satisfaction
- Just half of survey respondents say they’re “extremely” or “very satisfied” with their jobs overall.
- Employees with middle and higher family incomes are more likely than those with lower incomes to report feeling “highly satisfied” with their jobs (53% and 54%, versus 42%).
- A much smaller share, 30%, is “highly satisfied” with their pay — down from 34% last year.
- Some 29% of workers surveyed say they’re “not too” or “not at all satisfied” with their pay, mainly because it hasn’t kept up with cost-of-living increases.
- Large shares of respondents say their pay is too low for the quality (71%) or the amount (70%) of work they do.
Job security
- Most workers who responded to the survey (69%) feel they have a “great deal” or a “fair” amount of job security.
- Another 17% say they have “some” job security, and 13% say they have “little or none.”
- About seven-in-10 upper- and middle-income workers say they have a “great deal” or a “fair” amount of job security (78% and 71%), compared to 54% of lower-income workers who say the same things.
Looking for a new job?
- Compared to those in a 2022 survey, workers surveyed in 2024 are much more likely to say it would be difficult for them to find the kind of job they’d want if they were to look for a new one.
- As in 2022, most workers surveyed (63%) say they’re unlikely to look for a new job in the next six months.
- Most respondents (70%) say they have the education and training they need to get ahead in their job or career, while 30% say they need more education or training.
- Among workers who feel they need more education or job training, 43% say they couldn’t find the time; 38% say they couldn’t afford it; and 28% say their employer wouldn’t cover the cost.
Do workers feel respected?
- Workers with less education and lower incomes — and those whose jobs involve manual labor — are among the least likely to say that most Americans respect people who perform their type of job.
- At the same time, majorities of workers across education and income levels — and regardless of the kind of work they do — say their supervisors, co-workers and clients or customers treat them with respect all or most of the time.
- Half of workers surveyed see their current job as a career, while 15% consider it a steppingstone toward a career and about a third (35%) say it’s just a job to get them by.
[Photo credit: ziyan]
