FERNWOOD FITNESS - PULSE eMagazine - Issue#16 - Flipbook - Page 54
Who are the happiest
workers?
Happiness is not evenly
spread across industries,
locations or age groups.
By industry, government
and defence workers
reported the highest
levels of workplace
happiness, while
engineering and
construction sat at
the lower end. Retail,
education and
healthcare also
performed relatively well.
Geographically, South
Australia came out on
top, with the highest
proportion of happy
workers. Western
Australia recorded
the lowest levels of
reported workplace
happiness, highlighting
regional differences
and opportunities for
targeted action.
Happiness does not stop at the of昀椀ce door
One of the strongest messages in the
report is the link between work and life
outside of work. While 67 percent of
Australians say they are happy outside of
work, those who are happy at work are far
more likely to also feel happy at home.
Among people who are unhappy at work,
less than half reported being happy outside
of work. This reinforces the idea that work
plays a signi昀椀cant role in overall wellbeing,
even if it is not the only factor.
Happy people do more and stay longer
Happiness at work also in昀氀uences
behaviour. More than two thirds of
employees who are happy at work say they
are motivated to go above and beyond in
their roles. This includes mentoring others,
stepping up when needed and contributing
positively to team culture.
On the retention side, unhappy employees
are far more likely to think about changing
jobs. This matters when replacing an
employee can cost up to 200 percent of
their annual salary, not to mention the 昀氀ow
on effects to morale and workloads.
