Also read the following related article by Business Editor Kabous le Roux:

• How to be happy at work (Do you hate your job?  Not ready to quit?  Stop wasting your short life doing something you resent! Kabous le Roux on how to be happy at work...)

South African employees have an above average "Happiness at Work (H@W)" rating, according to data from the iOpener Institute for People and Performance. South African employees are particularly positive about the impact and meaning of their work.

They are, however, less positive about job security and resilience, but even these scores are marginally above average.

"South Africa has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world," says Katie Demain, consultant at Stoke which represents the iOpener Institute in South Africa. "So it makes sense that those who are gainfully employed are grateful to be so and make the most of the opportunity. And those who are not employed or employable have a very different outlook on and experience of life."

The iOpener Institute has compiled a global database of over 14 000 employees, measuring the various factors that make up their Happiness at Work. Around 1000 South Africans have responded to the survey.

The iOpener Institute’s questionnaire, the iPPQ, measures five components of Happiness at Work:

• Contribution — the effort an individual or team makes

• Conviction — short-term motivation

• Culture — a feeling of fit at work

• Commitment — long-term engagement

• Confidence — the belief in one’s abilities

"South Africans score above average on all five components," says Tracey Proudfoot, Director at Stoke, "with the highest being Commitment (6.24 out of 10), indicating a strong long-term engagement with their work. South African workers score lowest on Contribution (5.47 out of 10), meaning they feel less positive about the effort they make, but they still score above average globally in this regard." 

The three items on which South African workers score highest are feelings of doing something worthwhile (6.91 out of 10), having a positive impact on the world (6.75 out of 10), and liking their job (6.65 out of 10). This suggests a strong ability to find meaning in their careers.

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