Growth and Earnings Potential Number One Reason for Job Changes

January 11, 2007 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The latest Spherion Workplace Snapshot survey found the biggest portion of workers who made a voluntary job change in 2006 did so for better growth and earnings potential.

According to a Spherion press release, 21% of workers surveyed made a voluntary job change in 2006 – fewer than the 37% who said in December 2005 they planned to do so. The number one reason for changing jobs, cited by 30% of those who did, was growth and earnings potential.

Other reasons given by respondents for making a job change, according to the release, included:

  • Time & Flexibility – 23%,
  • Financial Compensation – 22%,
  • Culture & Work Environment – 22%,
  • Benefits – 12%,
  • Supervisor Relationship – 10%,
  • Training & Development – 9%, and
  • Management Climate – 9%.

However, Spherion found the top reason for making a job change in 2006 varied according to worker age. Growth and earnings potential was the top reason given by the majority of workers aged 18 to 29 (35%) and workers aged 50 to 64 (39%). Time and flexibility was the top reason those age 65 and older changed jobs (37%) and tied with financial compensation as the top reason for a change among respondents age 40 to 49 (23%).

For workers aged 25 to 29 and 30 to 39, growth and earnings potential and culture and work environment tied as the top reason for their voluntary job change last year, cited by 36% and 27% of respondents in those age groups, respectively.

In addition, the survey found younger workers and low-income workers were most likely to have voluntarily changed jobs last year. Approximately 36% of workers aged 18 to 29 voluntarily changed jobs in 2006, as did 40% of workers earning less than $15,000.

A US sample of 1,996 employed adults, age 18 and older, was interviewed in a poll conducted December 6-8, 2006 by Harris Interactive on behalf of Spherion.

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