No satisfaction

The results of a study published Tuesday suggest that satisfaction among German workers is at an all-time low, and that the most likely reasons for the decline are at odds with the country's resurgent and thriving economy.

Researchers at Duisburg-Essen University's Institute for Work and Qualification (IAQ) said that satisfaction had dropped steadily over the last 25 years, among all age groups, and that workers over 50 were among the most dissatisfied.

"We can see a very distinct trend over the last two decades that German workers are less and less satisfied with their work, with the decline in recent years most severe," Friedrich Scheller, of the University of Essen-Duisburg, told Deutsche Welle.

Since 1984, the IAQ has measured data based on annual surveys of 12,000 households across the socio-economic spectrum in Germany. The households surveyed were asked to rate their satisfaction at work on a scale from 0-10, with 10 being the most satisfied.

In 1984, the average level of satisfaction was 7.6; by 2009 that number dropped to 6.8, the study said.

Salaries, security dwindling

Although the study couldn't offer any official confirmation of the reasons for the decline, Scheller said the most likely reason was increased pressure in the work place and the constant fear of losing one's job.

"Those surveyed very frequently mentioned lower job security as the reason why they no longer enjoyed their job as before. Young couples with families are lacking flexibility and are unable to plan their future because they cannot depend on their jobs. This builds frustration."

The study points also out that work satisfaction among the older generation is declining most significantly, with German workers over the age of 50 now belonging to the least satisfied of all age groups. In 1984, workers over 50 were the most satisfied.

Another source of frustration, Scheller said, is pay. Those surveyed said the fact that their salaries had remained stagnant contrasted to Germany's constantly solid economic performance. Less than two years since the global economy was rocked by the financial crisis, Germany's annual GDP growth rate has already surged back to over 3 percent. Overall wages, however, according to the German Institute for Economic Research, have slightly dipped since the onset of the crisis.

Dissatisfied Germans

When compared with other European countries, work satisfaction in Germany lags well behind. A separate yet related study showed that, in 2006, Germany ranked 18th out of 22 European countries.

Denmark, Switzerland and Finland scored best with average figures of 7.8, 7.7, and 7.6 respectively. Germany placed just ahead of Ukraine, Bulgaria and Russia, which came in last with an average 6.1.

Scheller said, however, that these comparative results did not necessarily reflect a worsening labor market in Germany.

"It must be said that other studies have already shown that, independent of their satisfaction at work, Germans are less satisfied with their lives than people in other countries."

Author: Gabriel Borrud
Editor: Michael Lawton