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Workplace By Nathan Hurst, Globe Correspondent, 11/13/05 Experts at Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a New York outplacement firm, predict that up to 70 million work days will be missed by American workers this flu season — resulting in a loss for employers of nearly $8 billion in sick leave. Challenger used data from a survey of employers conducted this year to determine the amount of money companies can expect to lose this flu season. That survey showed that, on average, a company loses $110 for each paid sick day an employee takes. The average employee calls in sick about six days per year, costing their employers around $660 annually.
''These are the losses in a 'normal' flu season, and they do not even take into consideration the additional losses related to reduced output, lost sales, damaged morale, and the cost of hiring temporary workers,'' said John Challenger, chief executive of Challenger, in a release accompanying the survey. ''Imagine if there were an outbreak of a new flu strain that could not be contained with the vaccines on hand,'' he added, referring to the avian flu the government is predicting may someday become a pandemic. The survey noted that the SARS outbreak in 2003, which affected an estimated 8,000 people across the globe, cost the Chinese economy $15 billion, including large drops in tourism to the country and retail sales. Canada experienced similar but lesser effects — to the tune of around $1 billion — when the virus was discovered in the country later that year. ''If the outbreak reaches pandemic proportions, as is the fear with the avian flu, we will be facing not only unscheduled workplace absences but catastrophic economic consequences related to skyrocketing healthcare costs, plunging travel and tourism, a sharp decline in retail sales, and a significant drop in consumer confidence,'' Challenger said.
Don't feel compelled to feverishly close those instant message windows when co-workers pass by. Increasingly, they're instant messaging at work, too. Workplace gossip in many Boston offices is going online, according to a recent study conducted by America Online, Inc. The Virginia developer of the AOL Instant Messenger program, one of the nation's oldest instant messaging services, intended to track usage of the company's programs in different settings. The survey's broader results showed increased multimedia uses throughout the country, including within the workplace. Boston ranked third for most ''IM-savvy city'' in the country this year, climbing from last year's spot at number 13. The Hub is behind only Miami and New York. Of those instant messaging in Boston and the surrounding cities and towns, 25 percent use the services while at work. And while a good amount of the instant messaging Bostonians do at work has absolutely nothing to do with their jobs, a majority — 65 percent — said they frequently IM fellow workers to get quick answers on business-related matters. Throughout the nation, however, 80 percent of those IM users who said they use the program at work said they do so for nonwork-related matters. Just more than half — 58 percent — said they use it to talk to colleagues in the office, but not always for work-related reasons. Using instant messaging to avoid an awkward or potentially touchy conversation with a co-worker was reported by 12 percent of IMing employees. Another 24 percent reported they used instant messaging to say something to someone in the office they wouldn't want to say in a work e-mail that could potentially be read by management or other unintended viewers, including 19 percent who complained about their bosses over instant messaging. Making a pass at co-workers electronically was even reported as a somewhat common usage of work time instant messaging —18 percent of workers said they have used IMs to flirt with co-workers while on the clock. And in a work world where the number of contact methods printed on a business card continues to grow, it comes as little surprise that 13 percent if workers across the country have their screen name printed. Only 8 percent of Boston-based workers do, however, but another 8 percent will scrawl it down on a business card when they hand it out.
Middle management Accenture, a management consulting, technology services, and outsourcing firm, recently surveyed middle managers from across the country on how they feel about their employers. Overall, the respondents said they were increasingly dissatisfied with their companies, which they found to be mismanaged with few advancement prospects. This year's survey also represented a significant drop in satisfaction among middle managers from Accenture's 2004 findings. Two-thirds of middle managers last year said they were ''extremely or very satisfied with their workplace. That number dropped to less than half — 48 percent — in 2005. One-third of respondents this year described their organizations as ''mismanaged.'' The survey also dug deeper into why middle managers were dissatisfied. Only 28 percent of respondents expressed an upbeat outlook at prospects to eventually move up in their companies. Just slightly more — 31 percent — reported working at companies that helped middle managers tell subordinate workers ''bad news,'' such as lagging stock prices or layoff plans. Other increasingly important job factors, such as compensation packages, communication between more senior managers, and training and development, were also rated overwhelmingly unfavorably by the nation's middle managers. These unfavorable views on their jobs are starting to eat away at corporate loyalty, according to Ed Jensen, a senior executive at Accenture. ''The decline of employee loyalty, particularly at the critical middle-manager level, should be a growing source of concern for senior management, and the fact that middle managers think their companies are mismanaged is particularly alarming,'' Jensen said. ''When the negatives about a company trump the positives, the balance between deciding to stay or leave will tip in the wrong direction.'' The most frustrating part of middle managers' jobs, the survey reported, were issues between the company and the employee on compensation packages. Middle managers also reported having trouble balancing work and home lives in addition to not receiving enough credit for the work they do. The report cited tightening compensation packages at many companies as a problem for organizations that are looking to retain top-quality middle management. The problem is not rooted in just one issue, however. ''Reinventing the role of middle managers will be critical to this effort, particularly as increasing numbers of employees look toward retirement,'' Jensen said. ''Creating positive environments for employees to succeed will be a critical factor for winning in the marketplace.'' Nathan Hurst can be reached at nhurst@globe.com
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