Twenty-eight percent of Americans would leave their current job without another lined up, but 69% would think about staying if their employer made a few tweaks, according to the University of Phoenix's 2022 Career Optimism Index Study. Of those who said they were willing to take this risk, 29% do manual work, 31% provide direct services to others and 22% work in offices.

Workers in Denver, Colorado and Washington, D.C. were the most likely to say they were willing to quit their job without first securing another, while those in Philadelphia and New York were the least.

The survey found more than half (52%) of Americans are either actively seeking a job or expect to in the next six months, but 77% said they feel they would be prepared to job hunt now if the need arose. The demographic groups most likely to be looking – or expect to soon look – for work included Gen Z (81%), Black Americans (73%) and those with annual incomes under $50,000 (61%).