Buoyed by a strong economy, employees are satisfied with their jobs and their pay, but behind the rosy outlook is dissatisfaction with how pay is set, according to a new survey of 1,218 respondents by Sibson & Co. and World at Work (formerly American Compensation Association).

Some potential concerns for employers were noted:

• While 65 percent of respondents said they were satisfied with their pay level overall and 71 percent said their current pay satisfies them, only 43 percent said their employer’s pay process is satisfactory.

The pay process, as defined in the survey, means the methods the employer uses to determine pay amounts, grades, progress through grades, promotion decisions, and other pay structures. Although the survey did not ask respondents how well their employers communicate details of the pay process, a lack of communication may underlie the employee dissatisfaction.

• Despite all the attention given to new kinds of incentives such as stock options, most employees are focused on traditional forms of pay. Asked which type of pay change had been most important to them in the past year, 19 percent of respondents ranked merit pay first, 20 percent said overtime pay, 18 percent said cost of living allowances, and 12 percent said individual incentives.

The forms of pay most meaningful to employees are traditional, non-discretionary pay outside the control of supervisors.

• Time off is the most important indirect financial benefit. The survey found that with the rise of two-income households and the increase in work hours, employees value time off more highly than they did in past years.