Workers in the business process outsourcing (BPO) and call center sector are generally happy with their jobs, citing good employer reputation, people they can trust, and benefits as the reasons.
Philip Gioca, Country Manager at JobStreet, noted that the JobStreet.com’s 2016 Job Happiness Index identified BPO/call center industry, which represents the IT sector in the report, as having satisfied employees when it garnered an average satisfaction rating of 5.99 on a 10-point scale.
Although their work is considered stressful, employees remain generally happy and committed with their jobs.
To determine the factors that affect the increase or decrease in job happiness as well as the programs needed in establishing a better working environment, the JobStreet.com’s 2016 Job Happiness Index Study was conducted nationwide in July 2016, participated in by over 12,000 respondents consisting of junior executives, supervisors, managers and other higher-ups, and fresh graduates who have stayed in their current jobs for varying lengths of time and representing various specializations and industries.
Filipinos are the most happiest in SE Asia
The study emphasized that among employees in seven Asian nations, Filipinos are the happiest workers garnering an average satisfaction rating of 6.25, higher than ratings got by Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore. Indonesia and Thailand came in second and third, with ratings of 6.16 and 5.74, while Singapore has the lowest satisfaction rate of 5.09.
Having highlighted better rapport with colleagues, convenient work location, and company’s reputation as factors that drive happiness to employees at the workplace, they tend to be more interested in their jobs and performed their best potential for the organization.
These factors can easily be attributed to the relational nature of Filipinos, the worsening traffic situation that results in unproductive hours for workers and the need for stability in the companies they work for.
Employees are also after the salary, benefits, leadership, career development, job security, corporate values, trainings, work schedules, and immediate superior.
Job optimism
In terms of job optimism or outlook in the next six months, Filipino workers ranked third with a rating of 6.15, as having optimistic foresight of their employment in the future. In this segment, Indonesia and Vietnam took the top and second slots while Singapore clocked the lowest.
By position level, Filipino employees who are just starting out and those who have joined the highest ranks are the happiest with salaries and promotions as biggest contributors for making them extremely happy. These workers consist of fresh graduates with a rating of 6.52; followed by managers and higher-ups at 6.28; junior executives, 6.2; and supervisors, 6.15.
Government workers are the happiest
Employees in the government sector are the happiest among industries with a rate of 6.66; followed by the education and oil/gas with ratings of 6.53 and 6.47, respectively. Factors that contribute to their satisfaction are security of tenure, and higher salaries.
Although the ratings got by retail, banking and finance, and BPO/call center industries were lower (at 6.08, 6.03, and 5.99) compared with above-mentioned sectors, employees in these industries are still generally happy despite having more stress in the workplace, according to Gioco.
By specialization, workers specializing in hospitality (such as food and beverage, restaurants and hotels); building and construction; and education are the most satisfied.
On the other hand, what makes workers decide to stay or look for better opportunities are factors such as uninspiring leadership, insufficient salary, lack of benefits, and lack of training and development programs.
