The Latest from SHRM on Job Satisfaction and Employee Engagement

Everyone’s favorite HR association, SHRM, recently released another enlightening report on job satisfaction and employee engagement. Their findings were based on a survey of 600 individuals compared with research from the US Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey. It’s worth an in-depth review, but if you’ve only got time for a brief summary, here’s a quick rundown:

• SHRM’s survey covered 43 aspects of job satisfaction and 37 employee engagement factors broken down into eight categories: career development, benefits, work environment, engagement options, compensation, employee relationships with management, conditions for engagement, and engagement behaviors.
   
• Nearly nine out of 10 employees (88%) characterized themselves as being satisfied with their jobs—the highest level of satisfaction in the last decade.
   
• US employees were found to be moderately engaged, rating 3.8 on a 1–5 scale. This is a slight improvement over last year’s engagement index of 3.7.
   
• Top satisfaction contributors included respectful treatment of all employees (67%), compensation/pay (63%), benefits (60%), and job security (58%).
   
• Top conditions for engagement included relationships with coworkers (77%), opportunities to use skills and abilities (77%), and meaningfulness of their job (76%).
   
• There was minimal difference in satisfaction among generational cohorts between Millennials (86%), Gen X (88%), and Baby Boomers (90%).
   
• 44% of respondents said they were “likely” or “very likely” to look for a new job in the next 12 months. This is unchanged from last year but up from 39% in 2013.

For valuable advice on how to keep your employees happy and engaged, check out our employer resources.

Interested in reaching those 44% looking for a new job this year? Promote your opening on iHire!