The UK is not a nation of happy workers, a survey has revealed.

A study by the Alliance & Leicester bank found that most workers in the private sector are dissatisfied with at least one aspect of their job.

And for most people, the amount they are paid is the source of their unhappiness, the report showed.

Sources of complaint from unhappy workers

Salaries (51%) Long hours (28%) Benefits (18%) Pension provision (14%) Job description (12%) Employment security (12%) Location (9%) Source: Alliance & Leicester

Almost 60% of workers are disgruntled with one or more aspect of their job, and of these about half say their main complaint is with their salary.

That is despite separate research showing that average earnings in the private sector rose 3.8% in the year to May 2002, while inflation grew by only 1.5%.

"Even though salaries have been rising sharply over the past few years, levels of expectation have been rising faster," said Gareth Williams, head of marketing at Alliance & Leicester business banking,

"Employers need to recognise that salary gripes are often a reflection on other aspects of the job - such as long working hours or a lack of tangible benefits."

Women were more likely to be annoyed with their pay levels than men, with 53% of unhappy female workers citing pay as a factor, against 49% of men.

Chained to the desk?

The next biggest source of complaint was working long hours, with more than a quarter of disgruntled workers mentioning this as a factor.

A separate report released on Thursday also found that many people would like to change their working hours.

The latest Labour Market Trends survey from the Office for National Statistics said almost one in five UK workers would like to change their working pattern.

Many of these are in favour of working shorter hours for less pay, although they tended to be older workers or people in high-earning jobs.

Pensions poser

In the Alliance & Leicester survey, pension provision came as the fourth highest source of complaint, which may reflect the recent publicity given to problems with company schemes.

Other areas causing annoyance included benefits, job description and employment security.

Alliance & Leicester surveyed 1,100 people for the study.