Mick Jagger turned 80 this week, and while many things have changed since the rock star's time in the limelight, one thing has stayed the same: We (can’t get no) satisfaction. At least, that’s how Americans feel about their compensation.
So finds an Ipsos Poll from their Consumer Tracker released last month, which shows the thorn in the side of many Americans' contentment: their income. While the majority of the 1,100-plus people surveyed reported high levels of satisfaction in their work (82%), family life (81%), and life in general (81%), that satisfaction rate fell to 58% when it came to their salary. While the overall optimism might seem surprising given reports of widespread worker malaise, it's more that Americans are satisfied with their own lives but less confident and satisfied with America itself.
It makes sense that the one area of their lives where they're less happy has to do with their money (or lack thereof), given that the last couple of years have been marred by high inflation as the price of everything from gas to groceries skyrocketed. And many workers’ wages didn’t rise to meet the soaring cost of living, as everyone from those in the finance to the education sectors saw their salaries chip away quickly.
Things are looking up, if slightly: Inflation reached its lowest level in over two years, bringing a sliver of optimism to Americans; consumer sentiment hit a nearly two-year high in July. “The sharp rise in sentiment was largely attributable to the continued slowdown in inflation along with stability in labor markets,” Joanne Hsu, research associate professor and director of the Surveys of Consumers at University of Michigan, told Bloomberg. Yet, while sentiment is improving, it’s still below pre-pandemic levels.
That’s likely because Americans are still reeling from inflation's effects, as their need for better pay fuels the nation and a sector-wide fight for fair wages. After all, the federal minimum wage remains a staggering $7.25 an hour—the same as it was in 2009. While some states increased their minimum wage and the median real wage this past month was higher than pre-pandemic levels and on track with what it would be if the pandemic didn’t happen, many Americans still feel like they’re living paycheck-to-paycheck in today’s economy.
Fittingly, Ipsos found that those who were wealthier were happier with their compensation—79% of those who earn over $125,000 were satisfied. Even so, it wasn’t as high as other factors in Americans’ lives, such as their home and the company they work for. “Perhaps that relates to the perception that prices keep rising,” note the Ipsos researchers.
A high salary starts to feel like it’s not going as far when factoring in other economic plights like staggering student-debt. Younger generations like millennials, who have faced one financial challenge after another, feel the usual benchmark of a comfortable salary has moved up; even those raking in six figures told Fortune’s Alicia Adamczyk that they’re struggling to build wealth. The goalposts that come with it continue to move, as homeownership becomes more difficult to afford and a comfortable retirement turns into a multi-million dollar savings project.
Despite Americans building some wealth during the early pandemic, putting what would have otherwise been discretionary spending into savings, some reported in 2022 that they didn’t feel all that much better off than before COVID-19 as they dipped into their savings to meet rising living costs. But the reality may not be as bad as they think; a new JPMorgan study finds that while households are chipping away at their savings to make ends meet, their pandemic stashes still exist three years later.
Still, a raise always feels nice, especially as we’re just getting out the woods.
