Pandemic concerns, persistent inflation, burnout and more have wreaked havoc on employee well-being in recent years—but thanks to gains in pay, benefits and work/life balance, workers are actually happier than they have been in decades.

New data out from The Conference Board, a research organization, shows that overall job satisfaction among U.S. workers—particularly those who recently changed jobs—hit its highest levels on record last year. Overall, 62.3 percent of U.S. workers were satisfied in 2022—up from 60.2 percent in 2021 and 56.8 percent in 2020 and the highest level recorded since The Conference Board started conducting its annual job satisfaction survey in 1987.

“With unemployment at record lows, it’s a seller’s market for labor, and U.S. workers are reaping the rewards,” said Eren Selcuk, senior economist at The Conference Board.

The Conference Board’s annual survey, which asked workers about 26 components of their jobs, including work/life balance, health benefits, leave policies, retirement plans, workload and leadership—finds that every aspect of work has improved since the previous year’s survey. The largest jump from 2021 to 2022 was work/life balance, which grew 5.8 percentage points to reach 60.1 percent in 2022.

Source: Job Satisfaction at a High Thanks to Work/Life Balance Strides