Energy, mining, and utilities workers across the world are the least happy in their jobs, a new study published this week shows.
TinyPulse, an HR service that attempts to prevent employees burnout, looked at over 500,000 survey responses from over 60,000 employees in 13 different industries worldwide.
According to the results, the top three happiest industries last year were Consumer Products & Services, Real Estate, and Technology & Software.
Coming in at the bottom were the Manufacturing, Government & Nonprofit, and Energy, Mining & Utilities industries.
Overall happiness at work has been severely affected across the mining industry, as companies have cut thousands of jobs, sold uneconomic assets and engaged in wide-spread cost-cutting.
The resource sector, in particular, has been severely hit in the last 18 months. As a result of an ongoing rout in commodity prices, companies have cut thousands of jobs, sold uneconomic assets and engaged in wide-spread cost-cutting.
Not surprisingly, mining workers attitudes and overall happiness have been affected. But TinyPulse says the depressed environment is not the only factor dragging the moral of this industry workers down.
In determining an industry’s overall happiness, the experts looked at answers to questions dealing with management, professional development, career growth, and satisfaction with coworkers.
These three themes stood out:
The group says that thinking in dollar signs alone won’t help companies become more successful. “You’ll be better served by looking at what the top industries do, not what they pay,” they conclude.
12 Comments
MC Gutscher
True enough. New study shows only one out of seven miners is actually ‘Happy’.
kay nadian
MC, thanks so much for the laugh! My husband just found out he got laid off and I really didn’t think I had anything to smile about today, ’til I read your comment 🙂
MC Gutscher
I am sincerely sorry to hear about your husband being laid off. Brutal – so brutal.
When my husband was in the military we never had to worry about lay offs. Now that he’s retired and working on civy street…every day when he comes home, the first thing I ask is if he still has a job. We didn’t know how good we had it during the military days. Sure there was a lot of weird stress (Afghanistan) but that stress would eventually come to an end. Where as, not knowing from day to day if you’re going to have a job…that kind of daily stress eats you from the inside out.
Kay, my heart goes out to you…here’s hoping for better days to come.
Maintenance Guy
I’m a life long miner; I have worked in 3 continents in an industry that I loved. I have held fairly senior positions in the industry. In the last year and a half I changed industries, still maintaining equipment which is what I do but in a different setting. The difference between my new industry and my old is night and day. No more mine managers that don’t have a clue about they do to equipment, that come to work hung over looking to pick a fight, or have an idea what costs are. No more being expected to be on call 24/7, no snotty emails at night when I’m home with my family. No more being expected to maintain fleets of equipment with peanuts for resources while senior management has everything paid for, no more -40 or +45 in the desert. And, I have a retirement plan, I get time off when needed, I’m close to family and friends, my new company actually trains people. I am a miner, always have been, always will be in my heart, but having said that, the mining has a long way to go in regards to looking after its people and treating everyone the same. I don’t miss always looking over my shoulder to see where the next axe will fall.
kay nadian
Wow! Sounds like you won the prize, Maintenance Guy! Is your new company hiring ;)?
James Bond
I work in mining projects and there is nothing to make you feel like staying in the industry than to be shafted for money and thrown in the bin like a used condom. Makes you want to keep working for miners a lot.
Old style
Mining now days is an industry filled with kids just out of uni who are running the show under the guidance of managers who are threatened by workers who know what they are talking about. Bring back the old days where hard work is rewarded by promotion and poor decisions makers are left shovelling belts
Rodd Hott
After 10 years in the industry, i’ll tell you what, it steals your sole. Months on end out in a tent, no woman, no tavern, nothing. Just you and a bunch of guys around an oil burning stove. Then you come home every few months, have to kick out some guy who’s living in the house you paid for that the ol’ lady is banging while gone, etc etc. Ya,it’s a bunch of crap, should have been a sales rep at Victoria Secret
John Menzies
Not real news. The issue with the industry is the low barrier to entry. The result is that you end up with poorly qualified persons, without professional qualifications in senior positions in companies. Net result – you end up with an absence of honesty, an entire culture of this in some companies that are too easy to name.
Paul Piercy
Gee, did I get it wrong when I took up Metallurgy? No, it wasn’t and I have enjoyed many years in the mining industry. I think we are now seeing the reaction to FIFO. I always lived on site or in regional towns and enjoyed the community spirit engendered therein.
James Bond
Wow, now I can be sure it was not my perception telling me that. It is a burnout industry, you have to work along with unethical peers, distrusted administration, expected to be available 24/7, workers with a low morale, people being treated like cows, and just for a few bucks over the industries average earnings. Thanks for this article. it has opened my mind towards taking a new direction.
sandesh bukate
Thats really true its tough to work in mining fields.Great article though very informative on similar note you can also check this http://crbtech.in/civil-training/want-work-mining-industry/ which will help civil engineers who wants to work in mining industries.Thank you.