A Major Factor in Worker Satisfaction: Age

Of course most workplaces have some dissatisfied workers, but a new research study by the Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College tells us that those who are most satisfied with their jobs are older employees. Workers under 30 are almost as satisfied as their older colleagues. The most dissatisfied?  Those employees between the ages of 30 and 39.

These results aren’t extrapolated from just a few respondents. For this study, the Sloan Center surveyed 11,298 workers working for seven multinational companies at 24 work sites in 11 countries.

Why is the 30-39 age group less satisfied?  Personnel from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania offer an interpretation: “That is the stage of life where people typically start a family and have young kids at home.” Further, “these people are more likely to feel the strains of balancing work and life, thus pulling their minds away from being fully engaged” at work. This age group “is in an intense career stage where they are often engaged in continued on-the-job learning, with greater responsibilities.”

These findings do not suggest that employers should not hire employees who belong to this age cohort.  They do mean that employers should be aware of these data and should work with these specific employees to pull them through the occupationally rough times indicated by the Sloan Center findings.

Please share your thoughts in the comments.

Join the Fray

Unlike the vast majority of our emails and blog posts, this one does not have a direct connection to employer/employee relationships in the workplace.  It does, however, pertain to one of our favorite captains of industry, Virginia “Ginni” Rometty, CEO of IBM.

This post aims to question the predicament that the male-only Augusta National Golf Club, a bastion of gender discrimination, has with the three traditional and fixed seats on their Board of Directors: the CEOs of Exxon, AT&T, and IBM.

Christine Brennan, a regular columnist on the sports pages of USA TODAY and an undergraduate classmate of Rometty’s, reports that Rometty did not return an email inquiry from her on the subject.  (See Brennan’s article about the Augusta quandary here.)  So the world waits with bated breath to see what Augusta decides.

• Is Rometty already a member and we don’t know it yet?

• How will the Board of Directors decide?  Will Rometty be the first female ever to wear a green jacket?  Or will she be rejected, too?

• Since they haven’t yet announced a decision, your opinion could count.  What should the Board of Augusta National decide?  We’d love to know what you think.  Please share your opinions in the comments section below.

We’re Naming Our Choice for the Poster Person of Positive Psychology, and We’re Pushing Her Hard! Care to Name Your Choice?

Skylar Diggins is very likely the best basketball player in women’s college basketball. Maybe the best ever. She plays for Notre Dame.

Diggins was an All-American High School player. So was LeBron James. Diggins was a high school phenom, just like James. James is now a multi-millionaire. Diggins will get to play for the WNBA. The top salary in the WNBA is $105,000 a year.

How do you become a star player – or a star anything? You have to arrange to have parents who eliminate the word “can’t” from the family vocabulary. In fact, Diggins admits in a New York Times Magazine interview that her mother permanently banned her from using the word “can’t.” In other words, Diggins’ mother may be an advocate for Positive Psychology.

So, anyone care to name someone to compete with Diggins (with or without her mother) as the personification of Positive Psychology? We don’t think anyone comes close, but we are willing to consider your choice. We’ll share it with others, too.

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