Exploring the Job Satisfaction of Municipal Clerks

Abstract

Using data from a survey of municipal clerks across the United States, this research tests a model of job satisfaction for municipal employees based on research by Ellickson and Logsdon (2001). The primary hypothesis is that the model will not hold true for this subgroup of municipal employees because municipal clerks are different from other public sector employees. Clerks are different in part because their job duties and responsibilities are set out by statute, there is a great deal of autonomy, and the position is one most often held by females. To test the research hypotheses, multivariate regression analysis was employed. Results suggest that this model does not explain the variation in job satisfaction of municipal clerks across the United States as fully as the Ellickson and Logsdon’s model did in their study of municipal employees in one city.