A recent survey involving more than 34,600 employees sheds light on matters of remuneration and job satisfaction. However, salary is no longer employees’ top priority if recent reports and surveys are anything to go by. Nevertheless, working people still attach importance to receiving remuneration commensurate with their skills and professional investment.
In light of this, many feel that they are regularly underpaid by their current employers. In fact, 40% of the 34,612 working people questioned for ADP Research’s “People at Work 2024” survey say they are frequently confronted with payment errors.
Executives are particularly likely to say they are “often or always” underpaid, whether they are middle management (24%) or senior management (28%), and this is owing to the many hours of unpaid overtime they work. According to them, 37% of respondents spend between six and 10 hours a week working for free, which corresponds to at least three full days a month.
These payment mismatches are all the more regrettable given that working people are already dissatisfied with the remuneration they receive from their employers. Some 40% of those surveyed worldwide are not happy with the amount shown on their pay slip, even though more than three out of four workers have received a pay raise in the last 12 months, an average increase of 4%.
Note that, when it comes to remuneration, opinions differ from region to region. Nearly half (48%) of European workers believe they are underpaid, a higher proportion than in North America (46%), Latin America (42%) and Asia-Pacific (35%).
In Europe, only 53% of working people believe they are paid what they are worth. The French are particularly likely to complain about this aspect of their working lives.
To make ends meet, a growing number of working people are turning to multiple jobs; indeed, a quarter of those surveyed hold several jobs at the same time. The findings reveal that 42% do so to pay their living expenses, 31% to lead a more comfortable lifestyle, 23% to finance their retirement, and 21% to pay off their debts. – FMT
