A new Harris Poll released this morning of more than 1,000 blue-collar Americans undermines the conventional wisdom that such workers are unsatisfied with their job and their future in their fields.
A majority of the workers said they would recommend their jobs to friends and family members as something that has value and virtue in their lives and in their communities.
The survey also shows 70 percent of blue-collar workers maintain a deep distrust of elected officials. The pattern: positivity for their lives and livelihoods and negativity toward national politics.
The poll was commissioned by Express Employment, an Oklahoma City based nationwide staffing company that sends out 110,000 paychecks every week in 49 states.
Bill Stoller, CEO of Express Employment, said this poll is critical in understanding his workforce and their attitudes about the work they do throughout the country and their general feeling about the country. “The thing that will probably be most surprising to people who do not work in blue-collar jobs is the optimism among workers,” he said.
Harris Poll led the study, which found 51 percent of these workers see the country heading in the right direction, 69 percent say their communities are, and 85 percent of them see their personal lives heading in the right direction.
“I think there is this general perception out there that blue-collar workers are unhappy, they have a negative outlook on life, that they don’t have life as good as their white collar counterparts,” said Harris pollster Latoya Welch.
“They really are an optimistic group,” Welch said. “Of course, like other Americans, there are certainly aspects that can be improved; but overall, they are optimistic and happy about their jobs.”
Welch said the survey interviewed 1,049 U.S. adults over the age of 18 who are employed full-time, part-time, or self-employed in a position that includes some manual labor. “The industries we looked at were automotive services, like a mechanic, but also maintenance, agriculture, fishing, forestry, utilities, warehouse jobs, and transportation jobs.”
