Dubai: More than 73 per cent of the employees in the UAE are unhappy with work, as only 27 per cent of them expressed high satisfaction with their job in a recent survey by employment site Bayt.com and research firm YouGovSiraj.
The study, conducted last month, collected answers from 9,760 respondents aged between 20 and 62 in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria and Pakistan.
Researchers said the UAE's job satisfaction rating was "considerably low" in the region. Lebanon and Morocco fared well, posting the highest satisfaction ratings at 36 per cent and 35 per cent respectively.
Of all the nationalities polled, Gulf nationals appeared to be the least happy, with only 26 per cent enjoying a high level of satisfaction in their work.
"These figures are very telling about the current employment situation in the region, and provide an accurate picture of how not only different nationalities feel in their jobs, but how attitudes towards the working environment change between countries," said Bayt.com chief executive officer Rabea Ataya.
YouGovSiraj chief executive officer Nassim Ghrayeb said the survey indicates that, "despite highly favourable economic conditions, companies are not going far enough to make their employees feel like valued members of the workforce."
"This knowledge is of fundamental importance to businesses, especially in the face of increased costs of recruiting staff, compared to the actual costs of retaining them," Ghrayeb added.
The study did not specify the factors that influenced workers' satisfaction levels, but for 33-year-old Luisa who is working as a receptionist in Dubai, her low salary and her employer's failure to deliver its promise are turning her off.
"My boss promised to give me a Dh500 increase after six months, but all I got was Dh300 after one year. It increased my salary from Dh2,000 to Dh2,300, which is barely enough to cover my living expenses," says Luisa, a Mass Communications graduate.
According to recruitment specialist Gulftalent.com, while employers have been forced to increase salaries by an average of 10.7 per cent last year, this falls short of the increase in cost of living experienced by most expatriates.
The study also asked employees if they were happy with their "work organisation." Saudi Arabia fared worst in this category, with 40 per cent of the respondents saying their satisfaction with their work organisation is low.
Algeria came second with 38 per cent, followed by Kuwait and UAE with 34 per cent. In terms of motivation levels, the UAE scored lowest, with 65 per cent of employees saying they "feel motivated to perform well in the work" they do.
The UAE has 3.11 million foreign workers from 202 countries, employed by approximately 260,000 establishments, according to the 2007 labour report.
Expats make up for more than 90 per cent of the private sector labour force.
How satisfied are you with your job? Have you ever observed any discrimination at work? Why do you think employers fail to meet employee expectations in today's workplace?
By Cleofe Maceda, Staff Reporter