Dutch workers are the happiest and Italians are the most miserable according to a global survey measuring happiness at work.
Workers in the Netherlands topped the happiness table by scoring highly in areas of motivation (6.24 out of 10), confidence (5.40 out of 10) and of doing something worthwhile at work (5.94 out of 10).
They also reported a strong sense of liking colleagues (5.52 out of 10), enjoying a fair culture (5.84 out of 10) and appreciating their organisations’ values (6.29 out of 10).
In contrast, Italy’s unhappy workforce reported low levels of liking their colleagues (4.35 out of 10) at work and appreciating their organisations’ values (4.42 out of 10) as well as low motivation (4.09 out of 10). They also received the lowest score, worldwide, when it came to trusting the vision of their organisations’ leaders (3.65 out of 10).
The survey was carried out by The Wall Street Journal and iOpener Institute for People and Performance amongst 2,000 workers across 80 different countries and representing over 30 sectors of the global economy. The survey calculated five tested components that lead to happiness at work; contribution, conviction, culture, commitment and confidence.
The British are one of the happiest nationalities at work too, scoring at or above average on all measures of commitment (5.14 out of 10), culture (5.34 out of 10) and pride at work (5.22).
The survey also revealed the happiest jobs in the world. Consultants, educators and healthcare providers all scored highly, while employees in the financial sector and in accounting were identified as the least happy workers, due to low levels of motivation.
Respondents in these sectors also cited an inability to raise issues at work and low feelings of job security.
