Queensland workers search for balance: survey
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| Nhue-Liu and Pamela Georgeson take time out at lunchtime Pic by: Mark Calleja |
What happens at work is part of the big picture for the modern employee.
Bosses put too much pressure on us to perform, we are struggling to balance home commitments with work and we'd jump ship for a job offering more money - but most of us are happy with our jobs.
Queensland workers are a complex, sometimes contradictory, lot who are searching for balance between their work and home life.
A survey by The Courier-Mail's Careerone, conducted online and through the post, attracted 1129 responses describing working habits.
Employers should take note: Be a good boss or your workers will leave.
Most employees who responded to the survey say they care about who they work for, more than how much they pay.
They want to know what jobs are on offer, even if they are not planning an immediate job change.
If they do spot something they like, a higher salary is most likely to tempt them to a new employer.
The "wish list" of what we want at work speaks volumes about how Queensland workers are feeling.
Most people say achieving a balance between work and life was important, with about 60 per cent saying it was very important.
That could be because 91 per cent of Queensland workers say they are stressed.
Unrealistic expectations about workload is the number one stressor for respondents (65 per cent). Their managers is second (41 per cent).
Getting to and from work and workmates who annoy share the third stress ranking.
Technology and a physical environment were the least likely to stress workers.
Luckily for employers, it does seem money can buy a worker's contentment. The survey finds 63 per cent of workers are mostly happy with their jobs. A further 14 per cent say they are completely happy.
Those saying they are not happy are more likely to be aged 25-34, working casual hours or earning less than $30,000 a year. More people earning $100,000-plus were completely happy.
A higher cash counter-offer will see a poachable star stay put after all.
Make no mistake, Queensland workers are open to the idea of being poached or finding a new job. Even though the largest group of readers (45 per cent) say they are not looking for a job, more than 70 per cent say they will be in the next six months.
Workers earning less than $30,000 are likely to be looking for a new job.
The way job vacancies are communicated drew a surprisingly unified and strong response from readers.
People want to know salary (84 per cent), location (79 per cent), a description of the position (76 per cent), what their key duties will be (75 per cent) and the date by which their applications are due (73 per cent). They were closely followed by who the company was and what it did, what experience was required for the job and what title the job carried.
A recurring theme in the comments is that employers need to show in any vacancy communication what salary a job is offering and where it is located.
Many readers say they have applied for jobs showing promise, only to find out in interviews that it pays far less than they already earn, is in an inconvenient location or is for an employer they would not work for.
After having looked at a job advertisement, the first thing a jobseeker does is go to the recruiter or the employer's website.
They then either phone the contact and ask for more information or send in their resume.
Three in five workers say they have not used a recruitment agency to look for work in the past three years. Those who do are likely to be younger workers, those earning high wages or the unemployed.
How Queensland works
Happiness
14 per cent - completely happy
63 per cent - mostly happy
23 per cent - not happy
The more you earn, the happier you are. Almost a quarter of those people earning more than $100,000 say they are completely happy at work.
Stress factors
65 per cent - Unrealistic expectations about workload
41 per cent - Managers
25 per cent - Getting to and from work; workmates
18 per cent - Technology
17 per cent - Physical environment
Most important
- Work/life balance
- Quality of employer
- Salary and incentives
- Opportunity for career progression
- Workplace culture
- Reputation of company
- Flexible remuneration packages
- Workplace facilities
- Money
- Better career opportunity
- Better work/life balance
- New work challenges
- Change of career
- Other, eg location, new qualifications, new management
- Effective management
- Technology, communication courses
- Work duty-related instruction
- Team building