Resume Genius Says Job Satisfaction is at a 40-Year High

Since the COVID epidemic in 2020, Weekly Industry News has done at least a dozen stories — maybe even more — about how unhappy employees are with their employers. Complaints range from employees not really understanding the pressures of their jobs to not enough benefits to not enough money.

Most stories ended with the employees surveyed saying they’re job hunting and looking for new, positive horizons. Employers — in those stories — seem to be clueless.

But are employees really that unhappy, and are employers really that out of touch? Maybe not says a survey done by Resume Genius. The 2025 Job Satisfaction Statistics Report found overall job satisfaction is up 5.7% over last year. That’s the biggest year-to-year rise in 40 years.

Resume Genius Career Expert Eva Chan said it is a positive — but it isn’t.

The survey found 80% — 8 in 10 workers — say they are just “somewhat” satisfied and only 50% are truly happy on the job. And for the first time in 22 years, work-life balance is more important to employees than pay. The work environment is also a big part of the survey. Respondents paid close attention to the topic of a toxic work place and Resume Genius says employees are 10% more likely to leave because of that than low pay.

“For the first time in over twenty years, people care more about work-life balance than pay. That’s a big change,” Chan said. “What matters most now isn’t the paycheck — it’s being treated well, having some breathing room, and working in a place that doesn’t wear you down.”

A different survey by BambooHR found 23% of those seeking jobs say they’d take a pay cut averaging 5.4% for a position that offers a better life-balance and other non-pay benefits. Not so surprising — but actually surprising — is 50% of those surveyed saying they won’t take a job with a company that doesn’t share their personal values.

Flexibility and work-life balance — BambooHR found — is now a defining whether someone is happy at work. More employees now say they are happy with when they can work but a lot more are unhappy with where they can work.

• 46% say they’ll look for a new job if their employer no longer allows them to work from home
• 37% say they are highly satisfied with the flexibility they have to work from home

The Resume Genius report delved into information provided by McKinsey that said the most important thing employees want in a job is a great relationship with their direct supervisor.

Lastly, while the Resume Genius job satisfaction is a record high in 2025, a lot of workers still suffer through low pay, burnout and clueless, ineffective management.

Source link: PropertyCasualty360.com — https://bit.ly/4r4FCOY