Administrative Professionals Deserve Recognition Every Day of the Year

Administrative professionals get their day in the sun on the last Wednesday of every April, otherwise known as Administrative Professionals’ Day. But the data around these vital workers confirms that we should be celebrating them the other 364 days, too.

Here at CardSnacks, we find ourselves designing ecards for a range of appreciation and recognition days for employees in every industry. We have seen e-cards requested for “National Grocery Store Worker Day,” “National Reporter Day,” and even “Hug Your Lawyer Day.” But, as recognition holidays go, Administrative Professionals’ Day is always among the most popular.

Administrative Professionals’ Day started as National Secretaries Day by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in 1952. Eventually, the holiday’s name was changed in 2000 to reflect the growing complexity and diversity of the roles of administrative professionals.

Executives have long known that companies and offices run smoothly because of these employees, which is likely the impetus behind why we send so many gift cards and greetings every year. But, we were curious about how administrative professionals feel about their roles. Do they feel a sense of recognition and appreciation for the work they do? How would they like to be recognized?

To get answers to these and many other questions, we survey 209 administrative professionals across the United States to get their opinions on their work experiences.  Here’s what we found: 

They Feel Appreciated

Contrary to the negative headlines around workforce attitudes, administrative professionals generally feel appreciated for the work they do. 

According to survey results, 68.1% of participants feel appreciated with only 31.8% saying they did not feel appreciated for the work they do. Another important data point, more than half of respondents felt their bosses were also appreciative of their work. Additionally, 55.3% feel they are satisfied with their compensation.

When you look at the data by gender, however, there are some differences.  Women are almost twice as likely to feel underappreciated.  While just 12.3% of male administrative professionals feel underappreciated, the number jumps to 22.5% for females.  The differences were similar in other dimensions.  57% of men felt their bosses were respectful, while only 45% of women felt this way.

They Love Their Job

Love is a strong word, but based on the data, we think it’s fair to say they really enjoy their work.

At a time where we are hearing about mass layoffs, quiet quitting and employees jumping from one job to another, only 38.2% of administrative professionals said that they were actively looking for a new job. While this may sound high at first glance, it compares very favorably to other surveys which as many as 96% of workers are looking for a new job.  And 41.6% of administrative professionals surveyed consider their current job to be their “dream job”.