加班在美國的文化中已經根深蒂固,人們一直用加班來表現對工作的重視程度、爭取發展機會或者取悅嚴厲的老板。成為工作狂,被描述成一種備受領導者稱贊的高尚的職業道德,這可能是美國人清教徒祖先遺留下來的一種理念。
以埃隆·馬斯克為例。馬斯克號稱曾在特斯拉(Tesla)工廠里過夜。他后來在Twitter鼓勵員工效仿他的做法,命令員工“高強度長時間工作”。高盛(Goldman Sachs)曾因為高強度的100小時工作周政策遭到抨擊,之后,高盛CEO蘇德巍允許員工在周六休息,但他表示,“多付出一些努力”能夠帶來很大改變。
但隨著年輕人反對奮斗文化和重視工作-生活平衡,加班的價值遭到了質疑。現在,團隊通信平臺Slack告訴你,除非你自己真得想要加班,否則工作到深夜毫無用處。
Slack對10,300名員工的調查發現,超過三分之一(37%)員工表示他們每周至少會有一次加班。有受訪者表示之所以加班,是因為他們想要這樣做,目的是為了做完未完成的任務或者爭取發展的機會。超過一半(54%)受訪者卻是不得不加班。
迫使員工加班會形成一種悖論,讓員工工作效率低下。據Slack統計,員工感覺被雇主逼迫加班時,其工作時間的效率會下降20%。被迫加工的員工感覺工作相關壓力和職業倦怠的比例,比正常朝九晚五工作的上班族高一倍以上,而且他們的工作滿意度更低。
Slack調查發現,另一方面,下班后自愿加班的員工,工作效率和幸福感評分略高,而且他們并沒有像被迫加班的上班族一樣,抱怨加班對他們造成了太多負面影響。
諷刺的是,馬斯克和蘇德巍等高管們執著于強迫員工在晚上和周末加班以提高工作效率的做法,將會適得其反,降低員工的工作滿意度和工作效率。
自主權至關重要
一些老板和高管由于不了解新的工作方式,并且擔心近在眼前的經濟衰退,因此在疫情爆發之后,他們對提高效率產生了一種偏執,并開始跟蹤遠程辦公的下屬們的一舉一動。員工居家辦公和在現場辦公,哪種方式效率更高,目前仍沒有定論,但有一點可以確定,那就是沒有人喜歡被他人指手畫腳。
研究發現,工作場所監控讓員工的工作效果更差,而且更有可能辭職。這對于老板和員工而言都是在浪費時間,因為員工會開始“高效表演”,在完成自己的任務之后,花時間讓自己看起來很忙碌,從而取悅警惕的老板。
當員工感覺自己被強迫工作的時候效率更低,這是有道理的。大多數受訪者對Slack表示,他們在工作時間的效率更高(70%),其中包括被迫加班和不加班的受訪者。但被迫加班的受訪者表示完成任務的能力會因為“相互抵觸的優先任務”受到影響的比例,比正常下班的受訪者高50%。
與所有人一樣,員工希望能夠獲得自主權。Dropbox CEO德魯·休斯頓最近對《財富》雜志表示,需要記住的是,“讓員工有選擇權。他們并不是受支配的資源。”
事實上,更好的做法是讓員工可以在一定程度上自由安排自己的時間。Slack調查發現,一半辦公室職員表示他們很少或從來不休息,與正常休息的員工相比,他們的職業倦怠程度更高,工作-生活平衡更糟糕,而且工作效率更低。最后,讓員工自由選擇完成工作的時間和方式,似乎可以讓他們更好完成自己的工作。(財富中文網)
譯者:劉進龍
審校:汪皓
加班在美國的文化中已經根深蒂固,人們一直用加班來表現對工作的重視程度、爭取發展機會或者取悅嚴厲的老板。成為工作狂,被描述成一種備受領導者稱贊的高尚的職業道德,這可能是美國人清教徒祖先遺留下來的一種理念。
以埃隆·馬斯克為例。馬斯克號稱曾在特斯拉(Tesla)工廠里過夜。他后來在Twitter鼓勵員工效仿他的做法,命令員工“高強度長時間工作”。高盛(Goldman Sachs)曾因為高強度的100小時工作周政策遭到抨擊,之后,高盛CEO蘇德巍允許員工在周六休息,但他表示,“多付出一些努力”能夠帶來很大改變。
但隨著年輕人反對奮斗文化和重視工作-生活平衡,加班的價值遭到了質疑。現在,團隊通信平臺Slack告訴你,除非你自己真得想要加班,否則工作到深夜毫無用處。
Slack對10,300名員工的調查發現,超過三分之一(37%)員工表示他們每周至少會有一次加班。有受訪者表示之所以加班,是因為他們想要這樣做,目的是為了做完未完成的任務或者爭取發展的機會。超過一半(54%)受訪者卻是不得不加班。
迫使員工加班會形成一種悖論,讓員工工作效率低下。據Slack統計,員工感覺被雇主逼迫加班時,其工作時間的效率會下降20%。被迫加工的員工感覺工作相關壓力和職業倦怠的比例,比正常朝九晚五工作的上班族高一倍以上,而且他們的工作滿意度更低。
Slack調查發現,另一方面,下班后自愿加班的員工,工作效率和幸福感評分略高,而且他們并沒有像被迫加班的上班族一樣,抱怨加班對他們造成了太多負面影響。
諷刺的是,馬斯克和蘇德巍等高管們執著于強迫員工在晚上和周末加班以提高工作效率的做法,將會適得其反,降低員工的工作滿意度和工作效率。
自主權至關重要
一些老板和高管由于不了解新的工作方式,并且擔心近在眼前的經濟衰退,因此在疫情爆發之后,他們對提高效率產生了一種偏執,并開始跟蹤遠程辦公的下屬們的一舉一動。員工居家辦公和在現場辦公,哪種方式效率更高,目前仍沒有定論,但有一點可以確定,那就是沒有人喜歡被他人指手畫腳。
研究發現,工作場所監控讓員工的工作效果更差,而且更有可能辭職。這對于老板和員工而言都是在浪費時間,因為員工會開始“高效表演”,在完成自己的任務之后,花時間讓自己看起來很忙碌,從而取悅警惕的老板。
當員工感覺自己被強迫工作的時候效率更低,這是有道理的。大多數受訪者對Slack表示,他們在工作時間的效率更高(70%),其中包括被迫加班和不加班的受訪者。但被迫加班的受訪者表示完成任務的能力會因為“相互抵觸的優先任務”受到影響的比例,比正常下班的受訪者高50%。
與所有人一樣,員工希望能夠獲得自主權。Dropbox CEO德魯·休斯頓最近對《財富》雜志表示,需要記住的是,“讓員工有選擇權。他們并不是受支配的資源。”
事實上,更好的做法是讓員工可以在一定程度上自由安排自己的時間。Slack調查發現,一半辦公室職員表示他們很少或從來不休息,與正常休息的員工相比,他們的職業倦怠程度更高,工作-生活平衡更糟糕,而且工作效率更低。最后,讓員工自由選擇完成工作的時間和方式,似乎可以讓他們更好完成自己的工作。(財富中文網)
譯者:劉進龍
審校:汪皓
Working after hours has long been ingrained in American culture as a way to show how much you care about your job, to get ahead, or to appease an intense boss. Being a workaholic is often painted as a virtuous work ethic praised by leaders, a likely vestige of our Puritan roots.
Consider Elon Musk, who claimed to have once slept overnight at the Tesla factory. He’s since gone on record for encouraging similar behavior at Twitter, ordering employees to work “long hours at high intensity.” And after getting some flack for the company’s intense 100-hour workweeks, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon allowed bankers to take Saturdays off but noted that going the “extra mile” can make a big difference.
But as younger generations push back against hustle culture and assert the importance of work-life balance, the value of working overtime has been thrown into question. Now, team messaging platform Slack is here to tell you there’s no use in burning the midnight oil—unless you actually want to.
Surveying more than 10,300 employees globally, Slack found that more than a third (37%) of employees said they work after hours at least once a week. Some claim to do so because they want to, perhaps to catch up on lost tasks or get ahead. More than half (54%) do so because they feel they have to.
But pressuring employees to stay late creates a paradox that makes them less effective—workers who felt compelled by their employer to stay after hours reported 20% lower productivity throughout the day, according to Slack. They also reported more than double work-related stress and burnout, as well as lower levels of satisfaction with their jobs, than their counterparts who clock in a normal nine-to-five.
Those who work of their own accord during post-work hours, on the other hand, actually have slightly greater productivity and wellness scores, per Slack, and don’t report the same amount of negative impact that their pressured-to-work peers do.
Perhaps, then, executives’ fixation on forcing productivity in the form of long nights and weekends (in the manner of Musk and Solomon) is set to backfire, creating a more dissatisfied and therefore ironically less productive workforce.
All about autonomy
Some bosses and executives, struggling to understand how the new way of work would look and worried about an impending recession, developed productivity paranoia after the pandemic hit and began tracking their remote workers’ every move. The verdict is still out on whether employees are more productive while working from home or at the office, but one thing is for sure—no one likes being told what to do.
Research finds that workplace surveillance makes people worse at their jobs and more likely to quit. It’s a time suck on both ends, as workers start to engage in “productivity theater,” spending the time to appease their watchful bosses by making it look like they’re busy after they’ve finished their tasks.
It makes sense, then, that employees would also be less productive when they feel they’re forced to work. Most employees—both those who feel obligated to work after hours and those who don’t—told Slack they’re productive during the day (70%). But the former group is 50% more likely to report that their ability to complete tasks is deterred by “competing priorities” than those who leave at a normal time.
In the end, employees, like anyone, appreciate being treated with autonomy. What’s crucial to remember is that “employees have options,” Drew Houston, CEO of Dropbox, recently told Fortune. “They’re not resources to control.”
In fact, it’s better to give employees some free time in their schedule. Half of all office workers say they rarely or never take a break, reporting greater levels of burnout, worse work-life balance, and poorer productivity than those who do, per Slack. Ultimately, giving workers the power of choice in when and how they get their work to done seems to make them better at their job.