U.S. Workers Report Highest Job Satisfaction Since 2005

A new Conference Board report found 51 percent of U.S. workers said they were satisfied with their jobs in 2017, the highest level since 2005, according to the Wall Street Journal . Over the past seven years, Americans report feeling better about their wages along with a greater sense of job security. Jobless claims hit their lowest level in nearly 50 years in July. Employees on the higher end of the income scale are more satisfied than their less-affluent peers. Nearly 58 percent of those with total household income above $75,000 said they feel satisfied at work, compared with about 45 percent of those from households earning less than $75,000. "These are higher-skilled workers, managers, and they tend to have more control over their day-to-day work activities," notes The Conference Board's Rebecca Ray. About 58 percent of households with incomes of at least $75,000 were happy with their salary, similar to the rate of their overall job satisfaction. Meanwhile, 29.4 percent of people surveyed with household incomes below $75,000 said they were satisfied with their pay. Job satisfaction has improved for two consecutive years among persons with income under $75,000, while it declined in 2017 for those above that level. That may mirror a particularly tight labor market for lower-salaried workers, who endured stagnant pay for years but have been seeing some faster increases than higher-paid workers.