This Country Has the Happiest Employees in the World

Are you happy at work? If you live in India, Mexico or the U.S., signs point to yes. But that doesn’t mean happiness at work isn’t more widespread. In fact, a recent study shows that 71 percent of surveyed employees across the world feel positive about their well-being at work.

Edenred’s Annual Wellbeing Barometer surveyed 14,400 workers around the world to uncover surprising results on people’s happiness at work. Who knew most of us actually enjoy coming to the office?

According to the survey, here’s a list of countries ranked most to least happy at work:

1. India
2. Mexico
3. U.S.
4. Chile
5. Brazil
6. Germany
7. U.K.
8. China
9. Poland
10. Belgium
11. Spain
12. France
13. Turkey
14. Italy
15. Japan

India takes the lead with the happiest employees, as findings reveal that nearly 88 percent agreed to being happy at work. North and South American countries follow closely behind India, followed by Europe and China. Japan comes in last with a shocking 44 percent happiness rate.

But how is happiness for the survey determined? To measure well-being, the study took into account a mix of three factors: environment, appreciation and emotion.The importance of each of these well-being "pillars" varied from country to country.

In Japan, Turkey, China, Italy and Poland, well-being was most related to environmental factors such as being able to count on your colleagues for support and having a clear idea of job expectations. For India, Mexico, Brazil and Chile, emotional factors such as a stimulating workplace, confidence in your future and an interesting job controlled happiness.

Employees in mature economies held more balanced scores: the U.S., the U.K. and Spain lack emotion, and France, Germany and Belgium lack appreciation.

So what really drives well-being at work? Although it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly what makes Indian workers 11 percent more happier than those in the U.S., the survey reveals that HR policies in skills and career management are key drivers to well-being at work.