Conference Board Job Satisfaction Survey Finds Older Workers as Dissatisfied as Others

The Conference Board's report on job satisfaction suggests that Americans of all ages and income brackets continue to grow increasingly unhappy at work. However, the Board noted that the extreme dissatisfaction of younger workers could bode ill for multi-generational workforces:

"These numbers do not bode well given the multi-generational dynamics of the labor force," says Linda Barrington, managing director, Human Capital, The Conference Board. "The newest federal statistics show that baby boomers will compose a quarter of the U.S. workforce in eight years, and since 1987 we’ve watched them increasingly losing faith in the workplace." Twenty years ago, some 60 percent of that generation was satisfied with their jobs. Today, that figure is roughly 46 percent. Barrington adds: "The growing dissatisfaction across and between generations is important to address because it can directly impact the quality of multi-generational knowledge transfer-which is increasingly critical to effective workplace functioning."

Interestingly, even if older workers might seem more satisfied, that may be masking some other issues. As one response wrote:

Older workers who are in the age group typically most satisfied with their jobs, aren’t. They stay because the value of their investments and 401(k)s have fallen so far they can’t afford to retire; they have fewer options due to age, and are less likely to relocate for work.

Source: Conference Board News Release (January 5, 2010)

Other Reactions: John Zappe ere.net Blog Poat (January 19, 2010)