Business | Investment
Working and the bottom line
Some people say it's better to be in a job you love that hardly pays the rent than to be making a fortune in a job that sucks your soul out.
- By Cleofe Maceda, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:05 May 3, 2008
Some people say it's better to be in a job you love that hardly pays the rent than to be making a fortune in a job that sucks your soul out. What if you not only dislike your job, but you're also barely surviving?
After working for a year as a receptionist in Dubai, Luisa got her most anticipated monthly raise: Dh300. Her dismay came as no surprise. When she first joined the company, her boss promised to give her a Dh500 increase after six months.
"But all I got was Dh300 after one year. It increased my salary from Dh2,000 to Dh2,300, which is barely enough to cover my living expenses," says Luisa.
Working for the company is quite a task for Luisa. It means waking up as early as 5am before she goes to the office every day for six days a week, and cramming in a small room of five people when she goes home. She can't live somewhere less crowded even if she wants to. With her salary, she can only afford to pay Dh500 a month to rent one bed, not a room. "I still have to feed myself and send money home," she says.
Luisa is one of the employees who are obviously unhappy. According to a recent research by job site Bayt.com and research firm YouGovSiraj, employee satisfaction in the UAE is comparably low in the region, with only 27 per cent of the workers being "highly satisfied" with their job.
The researchers did not specify the reasons for the low job satisfaction rating in the UAE. But in Luisa's case, the reasons are obvious.
First, the employer did not deliver its promise. Second, the salary is low. Third, sitting behind the office counter as a receptionist is far from Luisa's dream job.
Factors
How content an individual is with his or her job is influenced by many factors, such as the state of the worker's relationship with the boss, the sense of fulfilment, the quality of working environment, etc.
A Gulf News reader who identifies himself as Dr. Rocky Termanini points it out clearly. He says the "dissatisfaction syndrome" is hitting the "underpaid, mal-motivated, under-valued and under-appreciated" employees.
However, Ahmad Bayoumi of Mars GCC says high salaries are not the key differentiator. "At the end of the day, employees desire something more than just a salary. They desire to be proud of what they do and to feel that they are developing and progressing," he says.
While it may be true that money isn't what gives an employee the only or most job satisfaction, no one can argue its importance. You need a certain amount of money to pay your rent or settle your bills. Besides, let's face it, the majority of the workers here are expatriates who come here to make money.
And, in the face of rising cost of living, anything that brings consumers some relief to inflation can definitely influence one's satisfaction. To say, then, that there's little connection between a good pay and happiness at work seems like consultancy spin.
While it may betrue that moneyisn't what gives an employee the onlyor most job satisfaction, no one can argue its importance. You need a certain amount of money to pay your rent or settle your bills.
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