WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In the first 26 weeks of 2008, the average weekly well-being of those in high-quality jobs has been substantially higher than those in low-quality jobs. In the average week this year, more than half of those in high-quality jobs (56%) are thriving, 42% struggling, and 2% suffering. It is a different story for those in low-quality jobs, 39% are thriving, 56% are struggling, and 5% are suffering.
Americans in higher quality jobs have shown a steady decline from a high of 62% thriving in the first week of February to a low of 51% thriving at the end of June. While this 11-percentage-point decline is significant, the deterioration is greater for those in lower quality jobs. In this category, the percentage thriving has declined 17 points from its peak of 48% in the last week of February to a low of 31% in June. Underscoring the vulnerability of this group, the well-being index for these workers has also shown more volatility throughout the year.
As Gallup has previously reported, the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index has shown a steady downward trend in the percentage of people who are thriving in 2008, particularly among full-time workers who are married with children. This downward trend correlates with changes in how people perceive their personal standard of living. But more recent research indicates the decline in thriving Americans is particularly pronounced among workers with dissatisfying work or a bad boss. On the other hand, the downward trend in well-being is lessened when workers experience a positive work environment -- one where they get to use their strengths and their supervisor has created a trusting environment.
Job Quality Defined
The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index surveys workers on several factors to gauge their feelings and perceptions about their work environment. Prior large-scale meta-analyses have shown important linkages between worker engagement and several organizational performance outcomes, such as worker attendance, retention, productivity, profitability, safety, and customer ratings. Positive work environments are characterized as those where workers express satisfaction with their work, report using their strengths in their area of work, and work in a culture of trust and partnership. Conversely, negative work environments lack satisfying work and are characterized by poor supervision. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index asks workers the following questions each day:
These questions do not measure all elements that are relevant to a quality workplace, but they tap into areas extensive research has found are indicators of quality work. Fifty-two percent of workers indicate they have satisfying work, where they get to use their strengths every day and have a supervisor who treats them like a partner, which creates an open and trusting environment. Twenty-three percent give negative responses to two or more of these same conditions, creating a drain on well-being and a greater sense of vulnerability during economic downtimes.
Job Quality and Daily Experience
What do workers in positive and negative work environments experience on a typical day? And how does this experience differ from non-work days? The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index asks respondents a series of daily experience questions related to whom they were with, what they did, and how they felt yesterday. Those in higher quality jobs experience more positive daily experiences than those in lower quality jobs. In particular, when it comes to feeling happiness, learning or doing something interesting, being treated with respect, and the absence of anger and negative stress, those in high-quality jobs have weekdays that are similar to weekends.
Conversely, those with low-quality work environments express significantly different experiences on weekdays than on weekends. For instance, those in negative work environments express significantly more anger and stress on weekdays, and they are less likely to feel happiness, learn or do something interesting, and are less likely to be treated with respect. Even workers in high-quality jobs experience elevated levels of stress during the workweek, but far less than those in low-quality jobs do.
Some stress is good stress. But the Gallup-Healthways Happiness-Stress Index reports the percentage of people who report stress or worry without happiness or enjoyment -- negative stress. And this negative stress is the most evident among workers in negative work environments and most differentiated between weekdays and weekends.
How workers experience their days in the context of a positive or negative work environment might shed some light on why those in lower quality jobs have been more vulnerable to the economic downturn so far this year, or why those in higher quality jobs have been more psychologically resilient.
About The Gallup Healthways Well Being Index
The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index tracks the well-being of U.S. residents every day, with the goal of providing the world's most up-to-date measure of individual and collective health and well-being. For this survey, Gallup is interviewing no fewer than 1,000 U.S. adults nationwide each day during 2008. The large scale of the study allows for comparisons of well-being across days, regions, states, ZIP Codes, and climate zones over time -- as well as comparisons with Gallup surveys of well-being in more than 140 countries worldwide. Perhaps most importantly, these measures provide a valuable tool to all policy-makers, business leaders, and healthcare providers engaged in improving the health and well-being of their constituencies.
