Christine Dobby - Love your job? You might be Canadian
November 28, 2011 Christine Dobby, FINANCIAL POST Nov 17, 2011
http://business.financialpost.com/2011/11/17/love-your-job-you-might-be-canadian/
As with so many things, Canada comes in a rather unremarkable third place in a LinkedIn survey on global worker happiness.
But the fact that 69% of Canadians surveyed were either “happy” or “very happy” with their current job, is worth noting.
Only respondents from the Netherlands and Sweden are more content with their careers, with 80% and 71% of respondents from those countries, respectively, saying they were happy.
At the other end of the scale was Japan, where only 31% of those polled said they were content, well below the global average of 63%.
LinkedIn surveyed 12,548 professionals in 16 countries, including 797 workers in Canada, for its research on job happiness released Thursday. (Not everyone polled responded to every question asked.)
Nicole Williams, connection director at the online professional network company, speculated that a tough economy might mean those with jobs appreciate them more than they would otherwise.
“Perhaps you didn’t get the raise you wanted this year, but you are appreciative of an amazing supportive manager who keeps an eye out for opportunities that will help you grow in your career,” she said.
Canadians were also fairly optimistic on the prospect of getting ahead in their career, with 53% of respondents saying they agree or strongly agree that there is a good chance of advancement “If I work hard and demonstrate results.”
This was above the global average of 52% who thought they would get ahead through hard work and good results.
But beyond getting promoted, Canadians’ professional aspirations seem a bit modest.
Out of options that included working abroad, starting a business and changing industries or careers, the top career ambitions for Canadian professionals were:
1. Get promoted
2. I’m happy where I am
3. Retire early
