Is your boss going to be a grinch for the holidays?
‘Tis the season to be merry and generous, but not for bosses apparently! Yes, it seems that many managers in London liked Ebbeneezer Scrooge’s management tactics before he was visited by three ghosts and wised up.
According to a new poll of over 1,200 UK managers published by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) some bosses (the key word being some) clearly recognize the role of the Christmas bash in rewarding staff and celebrating success at the end of a hard year – but some are just big old grinches!
Here are some of the most remarkable findings from the survey:
• 70% of managers will be doing work-related activities over the Christmas holidays , 46% of will work every day…
• The sectors where managers are most likely to keep working include management consultancy, business services, health and social care, education and manufacturing
• 13% of managers say their organization will stay open over Christmas and almost half (48%) of those say they won’t take any additional time off
Do you have a boss that is making you work over the holidays? Unfortunately, this problem isn’t just centralized to England. A quarter of Americans will be required to work on Christmas Day or New Year’s Day this year, according to Allstate/National Journal’s annual Heartland Monitor poll, out this month. But more, 45%, said there’s at least a chance they will work one of those holidays and they don’t even work in retail.
Luckily 60% of managers do believe that throwing a holiday party is an important way to recognize hard work and that they can lead to an increase in employee engagement. The office holiday party has made a real comeback in the last few years, which is a sign that the economy is on the upswing. According to a survey by global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, which polled HR professionals, 89% of companies are planning to host a holiday or year-end party this year. That figure is an improvement on 82% in 2012, and 68% in 2011. However, according to CMI 42% of managers say that many employees choose not to attend the party held by their organization.
In addition to the office holiday party just being a darn good time managers do realize that it is an important way of recognizing hard work throughout the year (especially since the recession that started in 2008). Sixty percent agree with the importance of the party this year, compared to just 45% in 2007. Only 17% think that the risk of poor behaviour outweighs the benefits of a celebration. However, 30% say there won’t be any Christmas festivities this year in their organisation and 30% of those organisations that do host a Christmas event won’t make a financial contribution.
Some managers (40%) worry that an expensive end of the year party could damage the organisation’s reputation, but only 24% say they would prefer it if the money was spent on something else. And some employees would prefer a bonus over a party. A recent online poll found that 27% of employees would prefer a cash bonus while 13 percent want pay raises, respondents told the staffing firm Express Employment Professionals. The responses came from 230 job seekers and new employees. Nine percent suggested extra days off or shorter holiday hours while 5% prefer gift cards. Only 1% want a holiday party.
So there are definitely some managers that are major grinches but it sounds like employees aren’t exactly channeling the holiday spirit either.
