What do Tradespeople enjoy most about their jobs?

But what is it that makes life in the trade so enjoyable?

We asked people from across different trades, from all over the UK, to share the things that contribute to this impressive job satisfaction and top of the list was customer interaction.

Being able to continually learn new things was a close second, just ahead of the ability to work outdoors.

The top five things that UK tradespeople enjoy about their work are:

1.       Interacting with customers – 22%

2.       Always learning something new – 21%

3.       Being able to work outdoors – 20%

4.       Job variety – 20%

5.       Being able to see what they have accomplished each day – 19%

However, this varies by trade and below you can see the most enjoyable aspect of each profession.

Bricklayers:

Bricklayers have the greatest job satisfaction of any trade in the UK, with 69% saying they enjoy their work.

Over a quarter (27%) say they are happy with their income and almost a fifth (19%) say they have a good work-life balance.

The things bricklayers enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Being able to make a difference and help people (15%)

2.       Always learning something new (15%)

3.       Job variety (8%)

Builders:

Almost three in five (58%) builders say they enjoy their job and just under half (45%) told us that they are proud of the work they do.

This could be because over a quarter (26%) say their work is fulfilling.

The things builders enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Being able to work outdoors (19%)

2.       Always learning something new (19%)

3.       Being able to make a difference and help people (19%)

Building surveyors:

Over two in five (43%) building surveyors say they love their work, with key factors including a good number of weekly hours worked (31%) and a healthy work-life balance (36%).

Building surveyors are also confident about their job security (28%) and say they are able to switch off when they stop working (29%).

The things building surveyors enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Interacting with customers (24%)

2.       Always learning something new (19%)

3.       Camaraderie with colleagues (19%)

Carpenters:

Almost half (45%) of carpenters say they have good job satisfaction and more than two in five (43%) are proud of their careers.

The same number (43%) say they are content with their income and one in five (20%) carpenters would recommend their job to someone else.

The things carpenters enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Being able to see what they have accomplished each day (23%)

2.       Camaraderie with colleagues (23%)

3.       Job variety (23%)

Electricians:

Electricians have the second-highest job satisfaction of any trade (63%) and are joint most likely to be proud of their work (58%).

More than two in five (41%) say they are happy with their salary and over a quarter (27%) say they have a fulfilling job.

The things electricians enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Being able to see what they have accomplished each day (25%)

2.       Job variety (22%)

3.       Always learning something new (22%)

Joiners:

Over two in five (44%) joiners say they enjoy their job, and they are the most likely trade to recommend their career to someone else (30%).

Joiners are also the happiest with their income (48%).

The things joiners enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Being able to work outdoors (30%)

2.       Job variety (22%)

3.       Camaraderie with colleagues (22%)

Landscapers:

Landscapers are amongst the proudest trades, with 56% saying they feel good about what they do, and almost three in five (57%) say they enjoy their work.

They are the most likely trade to say their job is fulfilling (37%) and they have the best work-life balance (40%).

The things landscapers enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Being able to work outdoors (36%)

2.       Job variety (31%)

3.       Always learning something new (29%)

Painter decorators:

Three in five (60%) painter decorators told us they have good job satisfaction, and they are the joint proudest of their work (58%), out of all the trades.

More than a fifth (22%) say they have good job security and a third (33%) say they have a healthy work-life balance.

The things painter decorators enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Being able to make a difference and help people (32%)

2.       Interacting with customers (28%)

3.       Being able to see what they have accomplished each day (28%)

Plasterers:

Almost half (46%) of plasterers enjoy their work and just under two in five (39%) say they are proud of their job.

They have the best job security (31%) of any trade and they have a great work-life balance (39%).

The things plasterers enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Interacting with customers (46%)

2.       Being able to work outdoors (31%)

3.       Job variety (23%)

Plumbers:

Plumbers have fantastic job satisfaction, with more than two in five (61%) saying they are happy with their careers and 44% being proud of their work.

They are the most likely trade to be happy with the number of hours they do each week (39%) and more than a third (35%) say their work is fulfilling.

The things plumbers enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Job variety (26%)

2.       Being able to work outdoors (22%)

3.       Always learning something new (22%)

Roofers:

More than half of roofers (54%) love their careers and almost a quarter (23%) say they are proud of their job.

The same number (23%) say they are happy with the number of hours they work each week and the amount of money they make.

The things roofers enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Always learning something new (39%)

2.       Interacting with customers (31%)

3.       Job variety (15%)

Scaffolders:

Scaffolders are amongst the most satisfied tradespeople, with three in five (60%) workers saying they enjoy what they do.

They also have a good work-life balance (30%) and are the most likely trade to say they are able to switch off once they finish each shift (60%).

The things scaffolders enjoy most about their job are:

1.       Job variety (20%)

2.       Being able to work outdoors (20%)

3.       Being able to see what they have accomplished each day (10%)