You’re not alone. While reports that the recession is over, or maybe plateauing, are appearing in the media, we’re still concerned about our prospects, and the worry is influencing our on-the-job morale. The Ipsos Reid Build a Better Workplace study surveyed 1,128 employees in Canada at the end of last month, and found that slightly more than one-fifth of us – 22 percent – is worried about losing their jobs this year. In companies where layoffs have already happened, that figure jumps to 44 percent.
Layoffs haven’t been the only reaction to the Great Recession of 2009. Survey respondents reported that other measures have been taken by companies anxious to stay afloat:
- Hiring freeze: 27%
- Salary freeze: 26%
- Budget cuts for travel: 26%
- Benefits cuts: 10%
- Salary reductions: 8%
- Mandatory vacations: 8%
- 4-day workweeks: 8%
These measures have added up to create a pretty glum workforce. The survey notes:
Respondents were asked about the reasons why their motivation is decreasing. Several employees explained: “The atmosphere of looming cutbacks combined with an uncommunicative senior management does little to inspire team spirit amongst the ranks,” says one survey respondent. Another stated: “After having 50% of staff laid-off there remains a combination of survivor’s guilt and the nagging question ‘Am I next?’”
So, this is the bad news. I’m now looking for good news: Not just how to keep morale up when those around you are losing theirs, but is it possible to succeed, if not thrive, career-wise, during a recession? My next ask-an-expert will focus on those questions. And I’d be happy to hear suggestions from the www.
Mar
09
A change from the usual depressing headlines about job losses! Okay, they’re still there, but stories in two major newspapers are urging people to cheer up at the office as a way to help cope with these tough economic times – and maybe even save their jobs.
The Guardian newspaper in the U.K. suggests that merely smiling at work, even if you don’t feel like it, “can relieve stress, make you seem successful and help you stay positive.” Sound like Stepford Employees, to me.
Meanwhile, The Globe and Mail examines the role humour plays in the workplace, and similarly notes that laughter can help reduce tension, although sarcasm is to be avoided and “lay-offs are often, if not always, a no-joke zone.” Best was their list of zeitgeisty zingers, including:
George Bush was asked today “what do you think of the credit crunch?” He replied: “It’s my favourite candy bar.”
Do dark times call for dark humour?
