Insights

Revealed: these are the UK’s happiest professions

by Sophie Parrott – executivegrapevine.com

Landscaping (86%), dog walking (78%) and counselling (74%) were ranked the top three happiest professions in the UK, according to new research.

The study, which was commissioned by Bark.com to coincide with International Week of Happiness at Work week, surveyed more than 40,000 professionals to find that 68% of wedding photographers said their job made them ‘very happy’, with 65% of personal trainers stating the same.

 

Kai Feller, Co-Founder of Bark.com said: “Being happy at work is very important, both for an employee and an employer. The happier your staff are, the more productive they’ll be, and aside from this, employers should always want their employees to feel happy and valued.

 

Below are the top ten happiest professions in the UK according to Bark.com’s research:

 

Ranking

Job

Rating

1.

Landscapers

86%

2.

Dog Walkers

78%

3.

Counsellors

74%

4.

Wedding Photographers

68%

5.

Architects

65%

6.

Tutors

63%

7.

Tennis Coaches

62%

8.

Ski Instructors

59%

9.

Gardeners

55%

10.

Personal Trainers

51%

 

The research found that those professions that involved working outdoors contributed to greater work happiness and satisfaction. For those employees that reported feeling unhappy at work, when asked what they disliked the most, over 59% said that they felt their job contributed ‘no real value’.

However, the research unearthed some of the UK’s unhappiest professions too.

Below is the top ten:

 

Ranking

Job

Rating

1.

Cleaners

73%

2.

Plumbers

68%

3.

Accountants

61%

4.

Electricians

60%

5.

Life Coaches

57%

6.

Window Cleaners

56%

7.

Painters & Decorators

54%

8.

Lawyers

51%

9.

Web Designers

50%

10.

Tree Surgeons

50%

 

The data broke down the happiest and unhappiest professions by regions too. West Midlands appeared to be the happiest area (71%), closely followed by the City and County of Bristol (68%), Buckinghamshire (62%), Cornwall (61%) and Wiltshire (57%).

On the contrary, employees working in Greater London (48%) were deemed to be unhappiest in their professions, with Lanarkshire (43%) following behind, as well as Lancashire (42%), Durham (40%) and Surrey (36%).