It seems money can't buy you happiness – at work, at least.
The humble hairdresser has fought back to retake the crown of Britain's happiest worker after slipping to fourth last year.
According to research carried out by vocational education experts City & Guilds, hairdressers enjoy their work more than those in more traditionally well-respected professions like law and teaching.
Its annual happiness index puts beauty therapists in second place while early years and childcare workers come in third. Plumbers, electricians and construction workers also proved popular.
Only two of the top ten can be seen as better-paid jobs, disproving the notion that money is the be-all and end-all when it comes to happiness at work. Accountancy scraped into the top ten while medical doctors and dentists came fourth – up from 22nd and 17th last year respectively.
C&G director general Chris Humphries said: "When asked to rate their workplace in terms of happiness, almost a third of people earning in the £10-£15k bracket gave their job a ten out of ten. Compare that to workers in the £40-£45k income bracket, where less than five per cent gave their workplace a ten.
"This indicates, and it may come as a surprise to some, that financial reward doesn't always mean a happier working environment or employee."
The happiness index reveals telling differences between different regions of Britain. Northern Ireland, the north-east, north-west and East Anglia were all happier than the average, in contrast to most of the Midlands and the south who scored under-par happiness-at-work scores.
Wales and Scotland have the most miserable workplaces in Britain, however – joined in England only by Yorkshire and Humberside.
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