Last night on WGBH TV’s Greater Boston with Emily Rooney I was invited to be on a panel discussing a new survey that shows record numbers of people are unhappy with their jobs.  The Conference Board’s poll, widely reported yesterday in every major publication, concludes that “Americans of all ages and income brackets continue to grow increasingly unhappy at work.”

The survey is based on the responses of 2,900 American workers asked to rate how satisfied they are at work, on a scale of 1 to 5.  45% say they are satisfied with their jobs, and according to the Conference Board, that’s a trend -in 1987, 61% said they were satisfied. The decline spanned all age groups, although young people under 25 were the least satisfied.

Do you buy it?  Here’s something interesting - it turns out this data is in complete conflict with Gallup Polls taken every August from 1989 to 2009, in which 85 to 94 percent of people say they are completely or somewhat satisfied with their jobs.  As Mark Twain once said, “There are lies, there are damn lies, and then, there are statistics.” 

Certainly, a lot of people complain about their jobs.  But that’s always been the case.  Recently, other surveys have shown that people are more satisfied because they’re grateful to HAVE a job in this economy.   So I guess it all depends on how you ask the questions, doesn’t it?

The bigger question isn’t whether AMERICANS are satisfied, but whether YOU are satisfied.  You deserve to be engaged in work that you find rewarding, interesting and meaningful.  Work is the way most of us express our purpose and passion.  If you aren’t inspired, it’s time to figure out why.  Work is like marriage - you can fall in love again.  Or, you can move on.  But do you real want to stay stuck?  Or do you want to get up and look forward to your day?

I think this is a two-pronged issue.  It’s about both employees and employers.  Take responsibility for your own happiness.  And then, seek out an employer that creates an environment where everyone in the organization knows that what they are doing matters.  Employers do need to understand what motivates people.  They need to communicate the importance of even routine work to the overall goals.  And they  need to appreciate people for contributing their talent and energy. 

In the meantime, get in touch with what you love to do and tell your boss.  You can’t possibly expect him or her to read your mind.  Understand the overall goals and priorities so that you can seize opportunities to get involved in projects that will move the organization forward.  There’s no better way to get recognized and rewarded, and be satisfied in your work.  

The Conference Board survey, by the way, blames lower job satisfaction not so much on employees but employers.  They say it correlates with the fact that companies have dropped or cut pension benefits and asked employees to contribute more to health care. In addition, they point out that wage growth has been relatively stagnant.  Again, I believe that these are factors, but other surveys show that if people feel their needs are being met, the real determinants of satisfaction are other factors like flexibility to do the job your way.

Ironically, the two-decade decline in happiness has coincided with substantial increases in worker productivity. Gains in the tech sector have ensured that even as workers become more unhappy, they have become more productive.  This is another reason I think you need to take all this with a grain of salt.  How much of productivity is related to employee engagement, and how much to technological advances that make it simpler to get a job done in one hour instead of eight?  Who’s knows?

I’m interested in your thoughts - just click Leave a Reply.

Still it’s a fascinating topic.  Thanks to Emily for inviting me on the show.  Here’s a link to the segment on WGBH TV: http://www.wgbh.org/programs/programDetail.cfm?programid=11

Here’s a link to the Washington Post article that discusses the conflicting results of polls on job satisfaction. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/05/AR2010010503977.html

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Here’s our latest press release - just  out this morning - on motivating employees.  Please read on, it may alter some of your assumptions about how to retain top talent and motivate people –through this economic recession and beyond.

The Top 5 Myths About Motivating Employees

Dangerous in a recession, deadly in a recovery

MEDIA CONTACT:
Sal Vittolino
Phone: (610) 359-8773
mailto:salvitt@comcast.net

In a typical workplace, only 29 percent of employees are actively motivated and engaged in their jobs, while 71 percent are unmotivated and disengaged - either not engaged at all (54 percent) or are actively disengaged (17 percent) - according to the Gallup Management Journal’s Employee Engagement Index.

“While there has been a slight uptick in employee motivation in recent surveys, this may be only temporary because it’s based on survival. As the pendulum swings back, employers should watch out - because employees will look at their jobs and their companies differently,” said Bates.

The Top 5 myths about motivating employees, according to Bates and “Motivate Like a CEO,“ are:

Myth #1: Money is the number one way to motivate employees. “Salaries and bonuses have been the staple of motivation. Most companies relied primarily, even completely, on monetary rewards,” said Bates. “Money is only one of many factors in motivation. Yet companies have become lazy about motivating people instead of giving them what they really crave, which is recognition, praise, and the opportunity to learn.”

Myth #2: If you want to motivate people, don’t let them in on the bad news. “This is a particularly damaging myth. Bad news always gets out to employees. They hate it when you hide bad news; they consider themselves partners in the company, and they long for a chance to contribute and make a difference, especially in tough times,” said Bates. “The surest way to motivate people is to empower them even with terrible news, so they can come to terms with reality, think their way through the crisis, and contribute to creative solutions going forward,” said Bates.


Myth #3: Most employees know what motivates them. “Many people are searching for a larger purpose, and they are not finding it in their work,” said Bates. “In challenging times, employers can become a powerful source of motivation and pride among talented people. In a downturn, leaders must talk to employees and help them discover who they are and what motivates them. Spend time with them; ask them why they enjoy the work, what they enjoy most, how they want to contribute, and where they see themselves in the future,” said Bates.

Myth #4: You simply cannot motivate everyone. “This was true in boom times, when organizations were bloated and some people you hired were marginal. Those days are over,” said Bates. “Now that companies have downsized and are arguably leaner and meaner with the best talent, this is a damaging assumption. It is a leader’s responsibility to motivate employees. It’s time to stop blaming employees, and start looking to leaders to ignite the spark,” said Bates.

Myth #5: People are just grateful to have a job, and this attitude will survive the downturn. “Top talent will always have a place to go, and while they may have had less mobility during the recession, your competitors are already looking around to see who is unhappy and ready to leave,” said Bates. “Employers who keep believing their people are just grateful to have a job will be blindsided when their top talent walks out the door because they don’t have leaders who are engaging them, praising them, recognizing them, and giving them opportunities to grow.”

If you are member of the media and would like to schedule an interview or set up a time to speak with Suzanne, please contact: Sal Vitollino - salvitt@comcast.net

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