Care professionals reveal job satisfaction far more important than salary
Over three times as many care professionals believe that enjoying their jobs (87.9%) is a better measure of career success, than having a high salary (24.2%). Despite this, almost over one in five (21%) believe that their career success is defined by how others see their achievements. That’s according to the latest research from CV-Library, the UK’s leading independent job board.
The survey asked care professionals how they felt about their career and whether they thought they were on the road to success. While 75.8% said that career success is important to them, 63.6% of care employees felt that they hadn’t achieved career success yet.
Care workers were asked to share how they measure career success, the top five responses include:
- Enjoying what you do – 87.9%
- Doing a job that makes a different to people’s lives – 81.8%
- Being proud of what you’ve achieved – 69.7%
- Working for a company you love – 63.6%
- Making lifelong friendships with colleagues – 42.4%
Lee Biggins, founder and managing director of CV-Library comments on the findings: “It’s positive to see that care professionals rate job satisfaction as the top measure of career success. This suggests that they’re putting their happiness first. It’s also evident that the rewarding nature of the work in this sector plays a big role in how they view their success.
“That said, it’s concerning to learn that one in five professionals in the sector define their career success by how others view them, not themselves. Employers need to promote a culture where all achievements are celebrated, helping workers feel proud of their individual successes.”
Care professionals were also asked at what age they believe you should have achieved career success. A third (32%) believe that you should have achieved career success by the age of 40. That was followed by 24% who believe 50 is the golden age for success.
Biggins continues: “It’s interesting that care professionals believe career success should be achieved by the age of 40. While everyone is different, it’s great to see that professionals are ambitious but are not putting too much pressure on themselves. Employers in the sector need to ensure that the opportunities are there for workers to have career development; offering internal promotions, salary reviews and regular catch-ups with their teams.”
