As financial anxiety grows, 28% of employed Americans are job-hunting

American workers who’ve managed to avoid getting laid off aren’t counting their blessings just yet.

According to a new survey by the New York Federal Reserve Bank, 28.4% of employed Americans reported searching for a job over the past four weeks—the highest level in more than ten years.

It’s also a massive uptick from the last time the survey was conducted in July 2023, when 19.4% of employed Americans reported job hunting.

Job hunting surged as more workers said they were less satisfied with their wages. Only 56.7% of survey respondents said they were happy with their current compensation package, down from 59.9% in July 2023.

Satisfaction with nonwage benefits plunged to 56.3% from 64.9% more than one year ago. Satisfaction with promotion opportunities also declined sharply to 44.2% from 53.5%.

In addition to the rise in job hunting, the New York Fed survey showed that fewer Americans were employed overall and that more people were looking for jobs. Meanwhile, the average expected likelihood of becoming unemployed rose to 4.4%, the highest in the survey’s history.

The survey results suggest workers are less confident about their employment prospects at a time when layoffs and joblessness are on the rise. These findings feed into other measures of general anxiety about personal finances and the economy.

Inflation and cost of living continue to bite

For many Americans, 2024 is shaping up to be the worst year of their financial lives.

According to a new survey by MarketWatch Guides, 47% of respondents admitted that they’re more stressed than ever by finances. Nearly nine in ten said they feel some level of financial anxiety.

These results are consistent with a 2023 survey conducted by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (CFP Board), which found that 89% of Americans are worried about the cost of living. An additional 87% said inflation and price increases are also weighing them down.

Although the surveys are more than one year apart, the cost of living remains a major source of stress for most.

Most Americans “still appear to be concerned about elevated prices and interest rates, and uncertainty about the future,” said Dana M. Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board. Peterson said there’s a general sense that “things may not improve until next year.”

Consumer optimism is forecast to improve because interest rates are expected to decline in the next 12 months.

The Federal Reserve is widely expected to begin cutting interest rates in September, with analysts at Citigroup forecasting seven additional rate cuts through July 2025.

But rate cuts aren’t all good news. Citigroup thinks they’re needed because the U.S. economy could be heading for a recession.

If that happens, the share of Americans looking for a job will likely continue to rise. Only this time, many of them won’t have the luxury of being employed.