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Employees' work ethic
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Employees' work ethic
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I'm the editor of an employment-related newspaper in the Twin Cities and wanted to write an article on the work ethic of today's worker.
Is there such a thing anymore? How do you know? How can you
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Forums » Topic Forums » Work Views » Employees' work ethic
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Employees' work ethic
posted at 1/3/2001 7:41 AM EST
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Posts: 3
First: 1/3/2001 Last: 7/13/2001 |
I'm the editor of an employment-related newspaper in the Twin Cities and wanted to write an article on the work ethic of today's worker.
Is there such a thing anymore? How do you know? How can you be sure? Are your workers making the most of their opportunity, or do they collect their paycheck and go home? Any responses to this forum would be good, or please email me personally at mkrumrie@bizjournals.com to discuss further. Thanks, Matt Krumrie |
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Employees' work ethic
posted at 4/11/2001 1:32 PM EDT
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Posts: 36
First: 8/4/1999 Last: 10/26/2002 |
as always, it varies by individuals. I've seen younger and older who work 16 hour days without complaint, and also those who spend most of their time chatting with coworkers, making personal calls, or otherwise looking for reasons not to work. It's a good idea when recruiting, to ask candidates how they know when they've put in a good day's work -- and a few other questions about motivation etc.
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Employees' work ethic
posted at 2/15/2002 11:21 AM EST
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Posts: 6
First: 8/24/2001 Last: 2/15/2002 |
I have to say in my experience so far most employees do not have a good work ethic. The mentality is that everything is owed, everyone expects everything. Few people respect their coworkers or the company they work for. The psychological contract between employee and employer is one in which the employee attempts to get as much from the employer as possible before leaving to work somewhere else. In addition in many states there are so many social programs that it pays more for an individual to be unemployed. I don't mean to be so bitter, but I feel I've been on both sides of this issue. Employees expect to get something for nothing, and with all of the state and federal regulations employers are burdened with, this is usually what they get. |
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Employees' work ethic
posted at 2/19/2002 9:08 AM EST
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Posts: 37
First: 1/8/2002 Last: 9/29/2005 |
As stated earlier, the work ethic can vary among individuals.
Actually, it can even vary within the individual. For some things, a particular worker may indeed go the extra mile. For others, the individual may simply live up to a basic value of delivering to his employer, no more and no less. Where I've seen that change of heart occur is after mergers. The individual may have gone to a company with a very outgoing culture. Then along comes an external force that changes his environment. His approach which was embraced in one setting is no longer welcome in another. (And some employees who've heard repeatedly about being a company's best assets wonder, "Why didn't they ask me my input about this merger if they allegedly value me so much?") Another thing to consider is generation. Different age groups have their own viewpoints of the employer/employee relationship. |
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Employees' work ethic
posted at 2/21/2002 2:30 AM EST
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Posts: 194
First: 4/30/2001 Last: 10/22/2002 |
I have to agree with the previous post, in that it can vary within the individual. Speaking from experience, I have worked in jobs that have not been challenging and where I have not felt like a valued member of the team. These jobs are draining, emotionally and motivationally. I've found that in these situations, I tend to not "go the extra mile" as much (however, I do get my work done), but I don't take incentive as much. And I think that that's true for a lot of people. Now, on the flipside, when I'm in a position where I feel like I'm valued (not just for what I do but for what I think as well), and have a job that's intellectually stimulating, I do take initiative and extend myself to improve things, and overall, I'm happier and it shows. I think work environment is a big player in determining work ethics. |
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Employees' work ethic
posted at 2/21/2002 11:26 AM EST
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Posts: 378
First: 1/8/2002 Last: 9/14/2011 |
I think the work ethic is definitely still alive, but it has to be cultivated.
People will respond to the type of leadership they are provided and responsibility for business performance starts at the top. If executives and managers set poor examples, the workforce will follow those examples and these behaviors will become ingrained in the culture. If the leaders treat others the way they wish to be treated, the workers will respond accordingly. You will always get some bad apples, though. My opinion is that too many employers promote jobs rather than careers. Look back in history to when layoffs started. Many business downsizings were the result of poor management. Workers became disposable. Don't get me wrong; I'm not sour. I've never been laid off in my life. Look at the published lists of "The Best Places to Work in America". The common denominator is usually effective leadership. These companies place a lot of value on employees and generally promote ethical values. When businesses place too much emphasis on shareholder value, other values will suffer. |
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Employees' work ethic
posted at 4/9/2002 11:02 AM EDT
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Posts: 58
First: 7/30/2001 Last: 4/22/2002 |
The likelihood of layoffs is more and more common to many. No industry or company is exempt anymore. As far as a company having poor leadership and caring more about the shareholders, that is what the company that I work for is doing right now. Their reputation is getting crushed and their significant layoffs and the way they are handling them is unprofessional. Too bad I can't say the name of this company even though it's public knowledge! Our branch office is still waiting word after a week and a half of first finding out about the layoffs. They've already gone in and cut staff at a number of offices on Friday and here we sit and wait some more! Cruel!
Anyway the question at hand is the work ethic of employees. I have to agree with the posters who say that it varies. I've seen young people who had no work ethic and just did the minimum (or less) of what they were hired to do. Then I've seen a few young people who were hard workers and put in extra effort all the time. This is the same that I've seen with people of all ages. However, it appears to me that the older a person is the more work ethic they have, in most cases. |
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Employees' work ethic
posted at 4/18/2002 9:56 AM EDT
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Posts: 4
First: 3/15/2002 Last: 9/3/2002 |
I think I can agree with pretty much everyones input. Personally I think the answers to the questions depend on a number of different things. If one looks at the working population of the U.S. for example they would probably notice a major change in the work ethic of the employable population over the last century. There is still such a thing but do to the change in the relationship of the employee to employer it is very different now than say around the depression era. There are a growing number of employees that take for granted that they have a good job, because they didn't have to work real hard to get it or keep it. Now this is changing. Unemployment rates are up and companies have now been given the oppurtunity to weed out the employees that maybe don't work as hard as the next person to retain their job. This of course is in a very generalized form.
Personally I would like to think that my workers are making the most of their oppurtunies, but I can feel pretty confident that they are not. I talk with managers all the time that bend over backwords to try to keep a good employee but for one reason or another the employee leaves. This is very frustrating for the managers. My company has not been hit nearly as hard the current economy, in fact we are still hiring in certain positions to fill spots above and beyond those vacated by former employees. |
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