Worker well-being in the United States: Finding variation across job categories☆☆☆

Abstract

Job categories shape the contexts that contribute to worker well-being, including their health, connectivity, and engagement. Using data from the 2014 Gallup Daily tracking survey, this study documented the distribution of worker well-being across 11 broad job categories among a national sample of employed adults in the United States. Well-being was measured by Gallup-Sharecare Well-Being 5™, a composite measure of five well-being dimensions (purpose, community, physical, financial, and social). Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to examine how well-being varied across job categories and the extent to which household income modified that relationship, controlling for demographic factors. Well-being varied significantly across job categories, even after adjusting for household income and demographic factors. Well-being was higher among business owners, professionals, managers, and farming/fishing workers and lower among clerical/office, service, manufacturing/production, and transportation workers. Purpose well-being (e.g., liking what you do and being motivated to achieve your goals) showed the greatest variability across job categories—there were small differences across income levels for business owners, professionals, managers, and farming/fishing workers, and statistically significant gaps between the high income group and the two lower income groups among clerical/office, service, manufacturing/production, and transportation workers. Physical well-being exhibited the smallest gaps across income groups within job categories. The findings suggest that job category is an important component of worker well-being that extends beyond the financial dimension to purpose well-being. Our results suggest well-being inequity across job categories, and highlight areas for future research, policy and practice, including targeted interventions to promote worker and workplace well-being.