Research released early this year (2010) by The Conference Board, a non-profit business oriented think tank, found that only 45% of those surveyed said they were satisfied with their current jobs. 45%! This means that over half of the American workers are estimated to be unhappy in their work.

Recent economical conditions have resulted in ongoing layoffs, downsizing, and major re-organizations. These factors contribute to our current levels of unemployment. Those who remain actively employed in the workforce are often thought of as survivors and are left to fill in the productivity gaps that occurred when their colleagues and other co-workers left. This is a significant increase in pressure on those who remain employed and for some of these survivors this added burden, along with some feelings of guilt for having survived layoffs when so many of their peers did not, has been labeled by some as “survivor syndrome.” One could assume that the 45% satisfaction rate among workers is largely due to this survivor syndrome. One of the fascinating findings from the research conducted by The Conference Board, however, found that this 45% satisfaction rate was independent of this survivor syndrome. They say that regardless of economic or employment conditions, “Fewer Americans are satisfied with all aspects of their employment, and no age or income group is immune.” This has been a progressive trend since the late 1980’s.

Those who report to being less than satisfied with their current jobs typically experience poor “person-job (PJ) fit.” This term represents the lack of congruence or disconnect between what an employee wants or needs from their position and what he or she is actually getting. Research has shown that there is a direct correlation between low P-J fit and increased turnover, employee attitude, employee organizational-citizenship behaviors, decreased productivity, possible depression or other psychological distress, and obviously, decreased satisfaction. So the question is raised by this research – If being unhappy in your work can have such negative implications for everybody involved, why are more people reporting being dissatisfied with their work instead of fewer?

You can approach the answer to this question from two sides – that of the employer and that of the employee. From the perspective of the employer, the concern is primarily figuring out what is needed from an employee and who has the abilities or skills to reliably provide what is needed. Although it is given cursory attention during the selection process, most employers are more concerned with whether or not you can do the job and have very little concern for how you feel about doing the job or if you are meant to do the job. This is unfortunate as it denies the organization the opportunity to more effectively place their personnel in such a way as to insure both productivity and contentment from the employee, which thereby increases employee tenure and performance while simultaneously decreasing employer costs.

Employees who report being less than satisfied in their work may know intuitively that they would prefer to be happier in their work, but there are many factors that prevent them from acting on that instinct. In times such as these, it can often be heard, “be thankful you have a job.” There is some truth to this as adult responsibilities and obligations must still be met, whether we are happy in our work or not. Without our current job we fear we may not be able to meet those obligations in the same way. From our experience, however, a more frequent reason why employees stay in jobs or careers that are not satisfying to them is simply because they do not know what their other options are and they do not have any guarantees that any other job will be any better than their current position. The old saying, “the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t know” comes to mind here.

Fortunately, for these people there are multiple resources to offer assistance. A primary resource is that of career counseling or career coaching. By working with an objective professional who is trained in human behavior, career development, and navigational theories, an employee can begin to see some sunshine in what otherwise may begin to feel like a raincloud in their work world. Better yet, by making use of a career counselor who employs reliable, valid, scientifically-based values, interests, and personality assessments, an employee can gain a tremendous amount of self-insight and awareness. Through the coaching process, that insight can then be used to map a career path that should result in a greater P-J fit. In turn, this becomes a win-win situation for both the employee and the employer.

Career counseling services and career coaches are abundant in your larger cities and communities and they are also readily accessed in the smaller communities. If the research is showing that there has been a general decline in employee satisfaction over the past decade, it seems that we all should be making more use of the many career counselors and coaches that are out there. Increased self-knowledge that is accompanied by support, structure, and guidance through the huge ocean of career possibilities may help people to be more effective and finding your ideal career path.

Source:
I Can’t Get No...Job Satisfaction, That Is: America’s Unhappy Workers. The Conference Board, January 2010