Table of Contents
Job security affects everything from career decisions to financial planning, yet workers don’t experience it equally.
Zety’s 2026 Job Security Index evaluates job security scores from millions of employee-reported reviews and worker sentiment metrics. The scores shed light on how secure workers feel in their own jobs, but they don’t explain what drives those perceptions.
To better understand what distinguishes the highest- and lowest-rated occupations, we grouped each one into 50 standardized job categories and cross-referenced them with O*NET data. The analysis identifies recurring workplace and job characteristics associated with higher and lower job security scores.
Key Findings
- Average job security scores range from 3.89 to 2.25 on a 5-point scale.
- Occupations with higher and lower job security scores show distinct differences in their cognitive demands, physical demands, and technology use.
- All of the most secure careers fall within O*NET Job Zones 4 or 5, which generally require more education, experience, and/or training.
- Nearly all of the 10 least secure careers fall within Job Zones 2 or 3, where preparation requirements are typically lower.
Understanding the Rankings
The average job security scores in this study are based on Zety’s proprietary data, which aggregates millions of employee-reported ratings from major employment and workplace review platforms.
To standardize the analysis, we grouped similar job titles and matched them to their corresponding O*NET occupations. We then compared each occupation across several O*NET categories, including Essential Skills, Abilities, Knowledge, Work Activities, Work Styles, and Job Zone.
The results show notable differences in the types of work, preparation, and workplace characteristics represented among the highest- and lowest-rated occupations.
Top 10 Jobs Where Employees Feel Most Secure
Human resources managers top the list with a job security score of 3.89. This job, and the occupations that follow it, share several defining characteristics: They’re more likely to involve interpreting information, applying specialized knowledge, using digital tools, and making informed decisions.
| Rank | Occupation | Average Job Security Score | O*Net Job Zone* |
| 1 | Human Resources Manager | 3.89 | 5 |
| 2 | Postsecondary Teaching Assistants | 3.73 | 5 |
| 3 | Data Engineers & Database Architects | 3.71 | 4 |
| 4 | Business Intelligence & Data Analysts | 3.65 | 4 |
| 5 | Data Scientists | 3.65 | 5 |
| 6 | Management Analysts & Consultants | 3.59 | 4 |
| 7 | Software Developers | 3.58 | 4 |
| 8 | Financial & Investment Analysts | 3.55 | 4 |
| 9 | Human Resource Specialists | 3.50 | 4 |
| 10 | Accountants & Auditors | 3.48 | 4 |
*Job Zones classify occupations based on the level of education, experience, and training typically required to perform the job.
What This Reveals About the Most Secure Careers
Jobs that feel the most secure share the following:
- Problem-solving is a common thread. Occupations consistently involve critical thinking, analyzing information, and evaluating solutions.
- Technology is central to the work. Computer use is a top characteristic found across many top-ranked occupations, even outside traditional tech roles.
- Continuous learning is part of the job. Workers are expected to regularly build new skills to keep pace with changing tools, regulations, and best practices.
- Preparation is consistently high. All occupations in the top 10 fall within O*NET Job Zones 4 or 5.
Bottom 10 Jobs Where Employees Feel Least Secure
While the top 10 list is defined by analysis and expertise, the bottom 10 jobs require more physical presence. They also tend to require less formal preparation and are more likely to focus on task execution than problem-solving.
| Rank | Occupation | Average Job Security Score | O*Net Job Zone |
| 1 | Mental Health Counselors | 2.25 | 5 |
| 2 | Light Truck & Delivery Drivers | 2.57 | 2 |
| 3 | Security Guards | 2.66 | 2 |
| 4 | Warehouse & Material-Moving Workers | 2.76 | 2 |
| 5 | Heavy & Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers | 2.77 | 2 |
| 6 | General Maintenance & Repair Workers | 2.80 | 3 |
| 7 | Bartenders | 2.83 | 2 |
| 8 | Retail Salespersons | 2.83 | 2 |
| 9 | Restaurant Cooks | 2.86 | 2 |
| 10 | Baristas & Counter-Service Workers | 2.86 | 2 |
What This Reveals About the Least Secure Careers
Jobs that feel the least secure share the following:
- Most work is done on-site. These roles are closely tied to physical workplaces, equipment, vehicles, or customer-facing environments.
- Preparation requirements are generally lower. 9 of the 10 occupations fall within Job Zones 2 or 3.
- Physical work stands out. Stamina, strength, coordination, balance, and general physical activity are common characteristics across the lowest-rated occupations.
- Routine execution is more common. Compared to the top-ranked occupations, these jobs rely less on analyzing information and more on carrying out established tasks.
What Shapes Employee Perceptions of Job Security?
The clearest differences in the data are associated with the nature of the work itself rather than the industry it falls within. Employees feel most secure in roles involving analysis, technology, and specialized expertise and least secure in roles involving physical labor, routine tasks, and location-dependent duties.
Preparation plays a role, too, as 9 of the bottom 10 occupations fall within O*NET Job Zones 2 or 3, whereas none of the top 10 do. But that isn’t the whole story. Mental health counselors stand out as the exception. Despite requiring graduate-level education and falling within Job Zone 5, they received the lowest job security score in the study, suggesting that factors beyond education shape how secure employees feel in their jobs.
For press inquiries, contact Skyler Acevedo at skyler.acevedo@bold.com.
Methodology
Using Zety’s proprietary data, we aggregated and analyzed millions of employee-reported job security scores and worker sentiment metrics. To ensure sufficient sample size, the analysis included only occupations with at least 5,000 employee reviews.
Because employee-reported job titles vary widely, we consolidated similar titles into 50 standardized occupational categories. Generic or ambiguous titles that could not be reliably matched to a specific occupation, such as “Intern” or “Manager,” were removed. Each standardized category was then mapped to a representative O*NET occupation using the closest official occupational classification. Each occupational category was assigned an average job security score calculated across all matched job titles, weighted by employee review count.
Comparisons focused on O*NET measures of Essential Skills, Abilities, Knowledge, Work Activities, Work Styles, and Job Zone to identify patterns associated with employee-rated job security.
About Zety
Zety’s Resume Builder is a premier platform that leverages advanced AI tools to help job seekers stand out and land interviews effortlessly. Offering step-by-step guidance, curated content suggestions, and 100s of professional, ATS-friendly resume templates, it allows users to feel confident crafting tailored applications. Millions of professionals rely on Zety’s interactive suite—which also features an easy-to-use Cover Letter Generator—to produce high-quality documents that are free to create and ready to download. Since 2016, Zety’s career blog has provided free data-driven insights aimed at empowering professionals at every stage of their journey. The editorial team includes Certified Professional Resume Writers, with the best career advice and evidence-based findings featured in Business Insider, CNBC, and Forbes, among others. Follow Zety as a preferred source in Google to receive more workforce trends, career insights, and labor market research in your personalized search experience.
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