The Best Employers in America

It's possible to love your job and get a good salary too: You just have to work for the right company.
The first annual list of the best employers in America by PayScale and Business Insider evaluates companies by both pay and happiness.

The winner is a company you've probably never heard of: a New Jersey biopharmaceutical company called Celgene Corporation. Many of the best companies were also in the health care industry.

The famously indulgent tech industry also did well on this list, including Google (#2), Yahoo (#8), and Microsoft (#14).

Companies in the 2012 Fortune 500 were ranked using PayScale's salary and survey database. Happiness represented 57 percent of the final score and was measured through questions about satisfaction, feelings of meaningfulness, stress, and schedule flexibility. Pay represented 43 percent of the final score and was measured by looking at median pay after five years and pay compared to industry peers.

20. Dow Chemical Company

humdrumboy / FlickrHeadquartered in Midland, Mich., this chemicals company has about 50,000 employees.

Employees report very high rates of flexibility (85%); high rates of satisfaction (78%) and meaningfulness (66%); and average rates of relaxation (35%).

Median pay is very high at $90,000 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.



19. Booz, Allen and Hamilton

Glassdoor.comHeadquartered in Tysons Corner, Va., this management consulting company has 26,000 employees.

Employees report very high rates of relaxation (48%); and high rates of flexibility (83%), satisfaction (72%), and meaningfulness (61%).

Median pay is very high at $93,100 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.



18. Johnson & Johnson

REUTERS/Rick WilkingHeadquartered in New Brunswick, N.J., this pharmaceutical company has 117,900 employees.

Employees report very high rates of meaningfulness (73%); and high rates of relaxation (39%), flexibility (83%), and satisfaction (72%).

Median pay is very high at $92,000 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.


17. 3M Company

AP Photo/Matt RourkeHeadquartered in Two Harbors, Minn., this conglomerate company has 84,198 employees.

Employees report high rates of relaxation (44%), flexibility (79%), satisfaction (77%), and meaningfulness (59%).

Median pay is high at $82,400 after five years, and very high compared to industry peers.



16. The Boeing Company

REUTERS/Luke MacGregorHeadquartered in Chicago, Ill., this aerospace and defense company has 171,700 employees.

Employees report high rates of relaxation (45%), flexibility (80%), satisfaction (76%), and meaningfulness (68%).

Median pay is high at $85,900 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.



15. Amgen Corporation

AP Photo/Paul SakumaHeadquartered in Thousand Oaks, Calif., this biopharmaceutical company has 17,800 employees.

Employees report very high rates of meaningfulness (81%); high rates of flexibility (78%) and satisfaction (75%); and average rates of relaxation (37%).

Median pay is very high at $98,500 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.


14. Microsoft Corporation

REUTERS/Mike BlakeHeadquartered in Redmond, Wash., this computer software has 94,000 employees.

Employees report very high rates of flexibility (92%); high rates of relaxation (39%) and meaningfulness (60%); and average rates of satisfaction (69%).

Median pay is very high at $111,000 after five years, and very high compared to industry peers.


13. Abbott Laboratories

avxrents / FlickrHeadquartered in North Chicago, Ill., this pharmaceutical company has 91,000 employees.

Employees report very high rates of meaningfulness (81%); and high rates of relaxation (39%), flexibility (83%), and satisfaction (77%).

Median pay is high at $88,000 after five years, and high compared to industry peers.



12. ITT Exelis

nysetv1 / YouTubeHeadquartered in Tysons Corner, Va., this defense company has more than 20,000 employees.

Employees report very high rates of relaxation (63%), flexibility (84%), and satisfaction (79%); and high rates of meaningfulness (58%).

Median pay is very high at $102,000 after five years, and average compared to industry peers.