Most Feel Secure in Their Jobs, But Unsatisfied With Pay

U.S. workers are feeling good about their level of job security, and relatively few expect to look for a new job in the coming months, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. However, only 30% of U.S. workers are satisfied with their pay, down from 34% last year.

Among the 29% of workers who are not too or not at all satisfied with their pay, the top reason given is that their wages haven’t kept up with increases in the cost of living. Many survey respondents also said their pay is too low for the quality (71%) or amount (70%) of work they do.

More than half (54%) also said a major reason they are dissatisfied is that they don’t earn enough to pay their bills. Additionally, large majorities of workers across all family income levels said their pay hasn’t kept up with cost-of-living increases.

Still, most workers (69%) felt that they have a great deal or a fair amount of job security. Additionally, workers now are much more likely than in 2022 to say it would be difficult for them to get the kind of job they’d want if they were to look for a new one. Slightly more than half (52%) of workers said this would be difficult, compared with 37% in 2022. Half of workers also thought of their current job as a career, while 15% said it’s a stepping stone to one. About a third (35%) said it’s just a job to get them by.

Overall, about four-in-ten workers (42%) said most Americans have a great deal or a fair amount of respect for people who do the type of work they do. Workers with less education and lower incomes—and those whose jobs involve manual or physical labor—are among the least likely to say most Americans have a lot of respect for people who do their type of job. At the same time, majorities of workers across education and income levels and regardless of the type of work they do say their supervisors, co-workers, and clients or customers treat them with respect all or most of the time.