Meter readers 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, meter readers 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 meter readers 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Tile and marble setter | 2.8 | $48k |
| Mail superintendent | 2.7 | $80k |
| Product safety engineer | 2.7 | $99k |
| Sheet metal worker | 2.7 | $53k |
| Painter | 2.7 | $46k |
| Meter reader | 2.7 | $46k |
| Bus driver | 2.7 | $42k |
| Brickmason | 2.7 | $59k |
| Tool and die maker | 2.7 | $57k |
| Mining machine operator | 2.7 | $60k |
So what does it mean to be happy in your career? Let’s break it down into different dimensions:
- Salary: Are meter readers happy with their salary?
- Meaning: Do meter readers find their jobs meaningful?
- Personality fit: How well suited are people’s personalities to their everyday tasks as meter readers?
- Work environment: How enjoyable are meter reader’s work environments?
- Skills utilization: Are meter readers making the best use of their abilities?
Are meter readers happy with their salary?
Meter readers rated their satisfaction with their salaries 3.2/5. Few are explicitly unhappy with their salaries, with most meter readers having generally positive views of their salary.
We asked meter readers how fairly compensated they are for their work.
Their response was:
3.2 out of 5 stars
54 meter readers
22% of meter readers rated their compensation 5 stars
20% of meter readers rated their compensation 4 stars
30% of meter readers rated their compensation 3 stars
15% of meter readers rated their compensation 2 stars
13% of meter readers rated their compensation 1 stars
Do meter readers find their jobs meaningful?
On average, meter readers rate the meaningfulness of their work a 2.0/5. The majority of meter readers struggle to find any sort of meaning in their work, likely resulting in less satisfaction with the career overall.
We asked meter readers how meaningful they found their work.
Their response was:
2.0 out of 5 stars
54 meter readers
9% of meter readers rated how meaningful they found their career 5 stars
6% of meter readers rated how meaningful they found their career 4 stars
15% of meter readers rated how meaningful they found their career 3 stars
19% of meter readers rated how meaningful they found their career 2 stars
52% of meter readers rated how meaningful they found their career 1 stars
How well are people’s personalities suited to everyday tasks as meter readers?
Meter readers rated their personality fit with their work an average of 3.5/5. The majority of meter readers find their personalities quite well suited to their work, with relatively few having complaints about their fit.
We asked meter readers how well their personalities fit into their careers.
Their response was:
3.5 out of 5 stars
57 meter readers
21% of meter readers rated their career fit 5 stars
33% of meter readers rated their career fit 4 stars
32% of meter readers rated their career fit 3 stars
7% of meter readers rated their career fit 2 stars
7% of meter readers rated their career fit 1 stars
How enjoyable is a meter reader’s work environment?
As a whole, meter readers rated their enjoyment of their work environment 3.4/5. A solid majority of meter readers enjoy their work environment, probably contributing to overall higher satisfaction with working as a meter reader.
We asked meter readers how much they enjoyed their work environment.
Their response was:
3.4 out of 5 stars
58 meter readers
19% of meter readers rated their work environment 5 stars
33% of meter readers rated their work environment 4 stars
26% of meter readers rated their work environment 3 stars
14% of meter readers rated their work environment 2 stars
9% of meter readers rated their work environment 1 stars
Are meter readers making the best use of their abilities?
Former meter readers on CareerExplorer have rated their skills utilization 2.2/5. Most feel that their skills are being underutilized in the career, probably leading to more general dissatisfaction with being a meter reader.
We asked meter readers how well their abilities were used in their careers.
Their response was:
2.2 out of 5 stars
57 meter readers
11% of meter readers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 5 stars
7% of meter readers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 4 stars
16% of meter readers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 3 stars
26% of meter readers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 2 stars
40% of meter readers rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 1 stars