Work/life balance is among the most common buzzwords — and the slipperiest issues — around HR today. Wonder what jobs offer the best of this elusive ideal? Read on.
Recently, Glassdoor identified the 25 Best Jobs for Work/Life Balance, compiled using employee feedback shared on the career consultant’s website over the past year.
Glassdoor’s clients rated their satisfaction with their jobs’ work/life balance on a 1-to-5 scale — 1 being totally unsatisfied, 5 being very satisfied. Turns out work-life balance has decreased in recent years, as employees have reported an average work-life balance satisfaction rating of 3.5 in 2009, 3.4 in 2012, and 3.2 thus far in 2015.
So here’s Glassdoor’s lineup of this year’s 25 best jobs for work/life balance (listing includes average salary and number of available positions on the Glassdoor jobs board):
Data Scientist
Work-Life Balance Rating: 4.2
Salary: $114,808
Number of Job Openings: 1,315
SEO Manager
Work-Life Balance Rating: 4.1
Salary: $45,720
Number of Job Openings: 338
Talent Acquisition Specialist
Work-Life Balance Rating: 4.0
Salary: $63,504
Number of Job Openings: 1,171
Social Media Manager
Work-Life Balance Rating: 4.0
Salary: $40,000
Number of Job Openings: 661
Substitute Teacher
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.9
Salary: $24,380
Number of Job Openings: 590
Recruiting Coordinator
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.9
Salary: $44,700
Number of Job Openings: 446
UX (User Experience) Designer
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.9
Salary: $91,440
Number of Job Openings: 338
Digital Marketing Manager
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.9
Salary: $70,052
Number of Job Openings: 640
Marketing Assistant
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $32,512
Number of Job Openings: 384
Web Developer
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $66,040
Number of Job Openings: 2,117
Risk Analyst
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $69,088
Number of Job Openings: 208
Civil Engineer
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $65,532
Number of Job Openings: 809
Client Manager
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $71,120
Number of Job Openings: 503
Instructional Designer
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $66,040
Number of Job Openings: 782
Marketing Analyst
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $60,000
Number of Job Openings: 341
Software QA Engineer
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $91,440
Number of Job Openings: 457
Web Designer
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $53,848
Number of Job Openings: 500
Research Technician
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
Salary: $36,525
Number of Job Openings: 299
Program Analyst
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
Salary: $71,120
Number of Job Openings: 524
Data Analyst
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
Salary: $58,928
Number of Job Openings: 1,954
Content Manager
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
Salary: $60,960
Number of Job Openings: 409
Solutions Engineer
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
Salary: $92,456
Number of Job Openings: 652
Lab Assistant
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
Salary: $27,550
Number of Job Openings: 779
Software Developer
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
Salary: $80,000
Number of Job Openings: 3,330
Front End Developer
Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
Salary: $75,000
Number of Job Openings: 1337
We’re struck by a couple of things here: First, how many of these jobs are in technology — don’t we keep hearing about how hard it is to find qualified tech people, and how overworked current staffers are?
Second, we wonder how many of these jobs would have even existed if similar research was conducted 15 years ago. Not too many, we’d think.