Switchboard operators are one of the least happy careers in the United States.
At CareerExplorer, we conduct an ongoing survey with millions of people and ask them how satisfied they are with their careers. As it turns out, switchboard operators rate their career happiness 2.7 out of 5 stars which puts them in the bottom 12% of careers.
To put this into perspective, we compared how happy switchboard operators are to similar careers in the industry. Take a look at the results below:
Salaries and satisfaction ratings in similar careers
| Career | Satisfaction | Avg Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Quality control inspector | 2.8 | $39k |
| IT support specialist | 2.8 | $50k |
| Mail superintendent | 2.7 | $28k |
| Meter reader | 2.7 | $44k |
| Bus driver | 2.7 | $34k |
| Switchboard operator | 2.7 | $16k |
| Courier | 2.7 | $26k |
| Delivery service driver | 2.6 | $15k |
| Administrative assistant | 2.6 | $29k |
| Receptionist | 2.6 | $10k |
So what does it mean to be happy in your career? Let’s break it down into different dimensions:
- Salary: Are switchboard operators happy with their salary?
- Meaning: Do switchboard operators find their jobs meaningful?
- Personality fit: How well suited are people’s personalities to their everyday tasks as switchboard operators?
- Work environment: How enjoyable are switchboard operator’s work environments?
- Skills utilization: Are switchboard operators making the best use of their abilities?
Are switchboard operators happy with their salary?
Switchboard operators rated their satisfaction with their salaries 3.0/5. Few are explicitly unhappy with their salaries, with most switchboard operators having generally positive views of their salary.
We asked switchboard operators how fairly compensated they are for their work.
Their response was:
3.0 out of 5 stars
94 switchboard operators
7% of switchboard operators rated their compensation 5 stars
27% of switchboard operators rated their compensation 4 stars
36% of switchboard operators rated their compensation 3 stars
16% of switchboard operators rated their compensation 2 stars
14% of switchboard operators rated their compensation 1 stars
Do switchboard operators find their jobs meaningful?
On average, switchboard operators rate the meaningfulness of their work a 2.2/5. The majority of switchboard operators struggle to find any sort of meaning in their work, likely resulting in less satisfaction with the career overall.
We asked switchboard operators how meaningful they found their work.
Their response was:
2.2 out of 5 stars
94 switchboard operators
10% of switchboard operators rated how meaningful they found their career 5 stars
5% of switchboard operators rated how meaningful they found their career 4 stars
22% of switchboard operators rated how meaningful they found their career 3 stars
23% of switchboard operators rated how meaningful they found their career 2 stars
39% of switchboard operators rated how meaningful they found their career 1 stars
How well are people’s personalities suited to everyday tasks as switchboard operators?
Switchboard operators rated their personality fit with their work an average of 3.6/5. The majority of switchboard operators find their personalities quite well suited to their work, with relatively few having complaints about their fit.
We asked switchboard operators how well their personalities fit into their careers.
Their response was:
3.6 out of 5 stars
102 switchboard operators
26% of switchboard operators rated their career fit 5 stars
27% of switchboard operators rated their career fit 4 stars
27% of switchboard operators rated their career fit 3 stars
13% of switchboard operators rated their career fit 2 stars
6% of switchboard operators rated their career fit 1 stars
How enjoyable is a switchboard operator’s work environment?
As a whole, switchboard operators rated their enjoyment of their work environment 3.3/5. Most of them tend to enjoy, or at least not be actively bothered by, their work environment.
We asked switchboard operators how much they enjoyed their work environment.
Their response was:
3.3 out of 5 stars
102 switchboard operators
21% of switchboard operators rated their work environment 5 stars
28% of switchboard operators rated their work environment 4 stars
25% of switchboard operators rated their work environment 3 stars
13% of switchboard operators rated their work environment 2 stars
14% of switchboard operators rated their work environment 1 stars
Are switchboard operators making the best use of their abilities?
Former switchboard operators on CareerExplorer have rated their skills utilization 2.3/5. Most feel that their skills are being underutilized in the career, probably leading to more general dissatisfaction with being a switchboard operator.
We asked switchboard operators how well their abilities were used in their careers.
Their response was:
2.3 out of 5 stars
104 switchboard operators
7% of switchboard operators rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 5 stars
13% of switchboard operators rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 4 stars
22% of switchboard operators rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 3 stars
19% of switchboard operators rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 2 stars
38% of switchboard operators rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 1 stars