Recently there have been a few reports that productivity growth in the United States is going to fall off a cliff as the Baby Boomers get older and slower. But for now, you guys seem to be working like dogs.
It’s an interesting dynamic in this economy. While so many economic indicators have been heading south, productivity has been on the rise.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, productivity climbed at the highest percentage rate in nearly 40 years from 2007 through 2010, the worst of the Great Recession. Basically, you guys are working harder with fewer people, and it turns out, your employer thinks you’re OK with it.
A survey by CareerBuilder released last month found that:
35 percent of employers reported that their current staffs are smaller than pre-recession levels. Of those employers, most anticipate no adjustments to staff levels in 2011, with 57 percent reporting that they have become accustomed to handling the workload with less headcount.
The survey didn’t ask if employees were handling the workload well, but it did ask if they were thinking about a new job.
* 15 percent of full-time, employed workers are actively seeking a new job.
* 75 percent reported that, although they are not actively looking, they would change jobs in 2011 for the right opportunity.
Maybe you’re not that accustomed to it after all.
Here’s a podcast of an interview I did with NPR’s Talk of the Nation a while back that looks at the phenomenon of rising worker productivity:
While recent reports make dire predictions for productivity gains, for right now you all seem to be kicking it at work.
Is it time to tell your boss you’re tired of workhorsing? That may make management at least start thinking about hiring.
February 22nd, 2011 at 12:32 pm
Maybe the reason productivity has not seemed to suffer is that some of what people cut were what I consider the “niceities”. For instance, remember the pleasant person who often sat out in front of a group of offices? They would answer phone calls, greet you when you arrived and direct you to the person with whom you had an appointment. Am I the only one who has noticed that I often walk into an empty space and have to wander around offices looking for someone?
I think cuts have also contributed to our being much more abrupt in the workplace. Who has time to write emails in complete paragraphs and make sure the punctuation is correct? And, why bother, when most people are only going to scan the first couple of lines on their blackberry?
However as much as I miss some of our civility, I doubt that people are comfortable telling their boss that they’re tired of workhorsing - they’ll just continue to go forward as best they can. A result of this is that there seems to be lower expectations of daily performance. I find that people are very casual about meeting commitments and there seems to be few repercussions - a direct result of everyone having too much to do.
February 22nd, 2011 at 1:57 pm
Our office had a receptionist until about 12 months ago, too. Management does not want to admit that the position was more than a “nicity” though–that person handled administrative tasks for engineers and others, and even provided some basic IT support. Sure, they’ve re-assigned the position’s official duties, but our front office does not run as smoothly now as it did before, and more people are feeling more stress than ever before.
February 24th, 2011 at 9:33 am
It could be a cutback on “niceties” or it could be that management has never really looked into what the “receptionist” does. Often people in these positions go above and beyond the job description. So, the cutback in “niceties” might mean cut backs in other unintended places. Unfortunately, managers and others, often fail to consider the impact of their decisions beyond the immediate outcome. This is a shame.
February 24th, 2011 at 11:26 am
I wholeheartedly agree, Michael.
That also means that anyone in one of those positions for which management may not have a full appreciation should make sure his/her boss knows about all the “extra” stuff they do. It shouldn’t just come from themselves, however. They should enlist co-workers to pass the word on to management (e.g., “Pat goes above and beyond when completing tasks; it makes my job easier and lets me focus on work that adds value.”)
February 24th, 2011 at 4:16 pm
I agree, Michael. I think in the current work environment, far too many are not looking at the unintended consequences. I’ve had three jobs in as many years, due to a layoff (seems too benign a term–the place I worked closed completely)and then a temp job. I can tell you that in all of them, the environment was chaotic at best. No one seemed to really know what was going on at any given time, no chain of command to speak of, no training, no clear expectations; just a lot of poorly paid people doing stuff and no one considering the impact of that mentality. I thought the first incidence of this was an anomoly. Now that I am experiencing it for the 3rd time, at a permanent position, I understand that this is simply how businesses function (or not) these days.