Fear of Work Report

According to research by City & Guilds almost five million Britain's admit to a touch of ergophobia (fear of work) with it most common amongst some of the nation’s top earners.

The Recruiter online which features the "City & Guilds Happiness Index" reports that 32% workers claimed that they were not particularly happy at work giving a satisfaction rating of less than seven out of 10. At the bottom of the pile are HR managers (2%), lawyers (4%) and secretaries (4%).

The research revealed that hairdressers are the happiest workers, followed by beauty therapists, childcare workers and plumbers.

The Index found that 19% of workers would like to “do something worthwhile”, 15% want a more flexible workday, and 8% cited that training and development would make their role more satisfying.

Chris Humphries, director general of City & Guilds, says: “A quarter of all UK workers have, or would, leave a position because of a lack of training and these results clearly demonstrate that some of the happiest workers are those who feel they have a lot of opportunities for professional development.”