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Because They’re Worth It — Beauticians Are ‘Made Up’ About Their Jobs

28 March 2006
Because They’re Worth It — Beauticians Are ‘Made Up’ About Their Jobs
Making other people look and feel good is having a positive effect on beauticians as they top the poll of the happiest workers in the UK. According to the City & Guilds Happiness Index, which is compiled annually to track the satisfaction of the UK workforce, beauticians enjoy their careers more than anyone else, awarding their jobs 9.2 out of ten on the happiness scale1. Other happy vocational workers3 in the UK are florists and hairdressers who rated highly.

Meanwhile, many of their white-collar4 counterparts are less content in the office with IT specialists, civil servants, lawyers and pharmacists rating their happiness as less than 7.55 out of ten. Top of the list of reasons for feeling unhappy in their jobs is feeling stressed (55 per cent) and feeling underpaid (35 per cent).

A parallel survey conducted for the first time by City & Guilds, Ireland to track the happiness of workers in Ireland shows that both vocational and white collar workers are generally happy in their jobs, awarding their jobs 7.7 out of 10 on the happiness scale. More mature workers in Ireland are particularly happy with workers between the age 40 and 49 give their jobs an 8.2 out of 10 rating. Females in Ireland aged between 30 to 39 rate their jobs even higher with an 8.3 out of 10 rating on the happiness scale. Contributing to their happiness in the work place is the ability to meet new people (77%), and feeling appreciated and respected in the workplace (81%).

And when it comes to work life balance, it is Britain’s vocational workers who again top the list of satisfied workers, with DJs giving their work life balance2 a rating of 6.7 out of ten. The ability to choose when they work (52 per cent) and being able to fit their work around their life (50 per cent) are important factors for DJs. The top five jobs with good work life balance are all vocational with beauticians coming in at number two (6.6), closely followed by chefs/cooks (6.4). Sadly, a successful work life balance remains a distant dream for many Irish workers with them giving their work life balance a rating of just 4.5 out of ten.

Says Keith Brooker, director of group markets and products at City & Guilds: “It is great to see that workers in all careers in Ireland are generally happy. Given the time that we spend in the workplace, finding a career that we are happy with - whether in a white-collar or vocational profession – should be everyone’s priority.”

Brooker continues: “Work life balance is a relatively new term for an age old concern. Our figures show that often in spite of rating their work as happy, far fewer workers in the Ireland consider themselves to have a good work-life balance. The relationship between these two factors is complex and warrants further study but it is perhaps a warning to all employers that levels of satisfaction in this important area are low.”

Dr Stephanie Morgan, Chartered Psychologist added: “Happiness at work is something that deserves far more research attention than at present. These findings highlight that for many people interacting with others at work is a key factor in their happiness.”

Methodology:
The research was undertaken by The Survey Shop in March 2006 and is based on a sample of 1,301 employees – in 610 academic professions and 691 in vocational occupations throughout the UK.

1 Respondents were asked to grade their level of happiness on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being very unhappy and 10 being very happy. A mean score was calculated which has been used as the measure of happiness.

2 Respondents were asked to decide to what extent they agree/disagree with the question ‘do you feel that you have a good work life balance?’ on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being strongly disagree and 10 being strongly agree. A mean score was calculated which has been used as the measure of work life balance.

3 Vocational workers include skilled practitioners and craftsmen and craftswomen such as beauticians, builders, butchers, care assistants, chefs, DJs, electricians, florists, fitness instructors, hairdressers, interior designers, plumbers, secretaries and travel agents.

4 White collar workers include accountants, architects, bankers, chartered engineers, civil engineers, health care professionals, IT professionals, lawyers, media, ministers, pharmacists, scientists and social workers.

City & Guilds (http://www.city-and-guilds.co.uk) is the UK’s leading awarding body for work-related qualifications. In total the organisation awards 1.3 million certificates to learners each year on over 500 subjects ranging from hair and beauty to catering and management.

P = Professional
V = Vocational

City & Guilds’ Happiness Index – Happiest Workers
Position Profession Average happiness rating 2005 position
1 Beauticians (V) 9.20 3
2 Clergy (P) 9.14 2
3 Florists (V) 9.04 17
4 Hairdressers (V) 8.63 1
5 Chartered engineers (P) 8.62 24
6 DJs (V) 8.61 9
7 Care assistants (V) 8.51 4
8 Butchers (V) 8.43 13
9 Interior designers (V) 8.24 6
10 Electricians (V) 8.22 14
11 Builders (V) 8.20 10
12 Travel agents (V) 8.15 25
13 Social workers (P) 8.13 30
14 Media (P) 8.13 16
15 Scientists/R&D scientists (P) 8.12 12
16 Plumbers (V) 8.11 15
17 Health care professionals (P) 8.04 7
18 Bankers (P) 8.04 19
19 Secretaries/receptionists (V) 7.96 22
20 Chefs/cooks (V) 7.94 5
21 Fitness instructors (V) 7.90 20
22 Accountants (P) 7.83 8
23 Architects (P) 7.80 18
24 IT specialists (P) 7.55 28
25 Mechanics (V) 7.54 11
26 Civil servants (P) 7.53 29
27 Lawyers (P) 7.52 23
28 Pharmacists (P) 7.29 27

City & Guilds’ Happiness Index – Workers with the best work/life balance
Position Profession Work/life balance rating
1 DJs (V) 6.7
2 Beauticians (V) 6.6
3 Chefs/cooks (V) 6.4
4 Interior designers (V) 6.0
5 Florists (V) 5.8
=6 Lawyers (P) 5.7
=6 Butchers (V) 5.7
8 Accountants (P) 5.5
9 Care assistants (V) 5.3
=10 Mechanics (V) 5.1
=10 Media (P) 5.1
12 Social workers (P) 5.0
=13 Architects (P) 4.9
=13 Builders (V) 4.9
=13 Pharmacists (P) 4.9
16 Secretaries/receptionists (V) 4.8
=17 Fitness instructors (V) 4.6
=17 Plumbers (V) 4.6
=19 Electricians (V) 4.3
=19 Civil servants (P) 4.3
21 Clergy (P) 4.2
22 IT specialists (P) 4.1
23 Health care professionals (P) 3.9
24 Chartered engineers (P) 3.7
25 Hairdressers (V) 3.5
26 Scientists/R&D scientists (P) 3.2
27 Travel agents (V) 3.4
28 Bankers (P) 2.8