People working in financial services are among the happiest in the UK when it comes to their career progression according to research by recruitment specialists Randstad Financial & Professional.

In a survey of over 2,000 British workers, on average 38% said they were content with their career progression. But 46% of those working in financial services said they were happy with the way they were scaling the corporate ladder.

Financial services came fourth in the ratings, with law (55%), property (59%) and insurance (73%) recording higher levels of satisfaction with their career development. At the other end of the spectrum, those working in media and wholesale were the least happy with their career progression (12% and 13% respectively).

Tara Ricks, managing director of Randstad Financial & Professional, said the variations were likely to be linked to different approaches to managing talent, with leading insurance, financial services and law firms typically having 'up or out' policies which mean employees who fail to attain a promotion after a certain amount of time are likely to be encouraged to move on.

This approach means there are fewer 'career blockers' holding up progression prospects for others, Ricks argued, saying: 'Dynamism in the workforce creates a high performance culture and is fundamental for the success of employers and the happiness of employees.'

Ricks said there seems to be little correlation between headcount growth and how satisfied people are with their career progression.

'Financial services remained static in size as a sector between 2009 and 2012, and the property sector expanded by just 1%, but these were the two sectors in which people were most happy with their career progression. We think this points to pride in being part of a high performance culture with sophisticated application of talent management,' she said.