HR World 3/14
The latest global HR news, including who works harder – Greeks or Germans?It’s true: Greeks ‘work harder’ than Germans
Southern Europeans have a reputation for being laid-back while their northern counterparts are better known for their Protestant work ethic – but statistics from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published by Madrid’s Institute of Economic Studies (IEE) show that in reality it’s the Greeks who are the hardest workers on the continent, while the Germans, Dutch and Norwegians are the most likely to knock off early.
The survey found that the average hours worked per worker in 2012 was a massive 2,034 in Greece, but just 1,397 in Germany, 1,381 in the Netherlands and 1,420 in Norway. The Italians, Portuguese, Spaniards and Brits all put in closer to the OECD average of 1,765 hours, with 1,752, 1,691, 1,686 and 1,654 respectively.
However, the figures arguably have less to do with lazy or industrious workers than with different approaches to the recession by employers across Europe. Alfredo Pastor, a professor of economics at Barcelona’s IESE Business School, told CCN Money: “In the crisis, what was adjusted in Germany was hours worked, while in Spain it was number of employees.”
In line with this, the OECD data shows that the number of workers working part-time in 2012 was 22 per cent in Germany, 20 per cent in Norway and 38 per cent in the Netherlands, but only 14 per cent in Spain and 10 per cent in Greece.
It’s also worth noting that productivity is higher in northern than in southern European countries – while GDP per hour worked in 2012 was $58 in Germany, $60 in the Netherlands and $87 in Norway, the figures for Greece, Portugal, Italy and Spain ranged from $34 to $50. “What we have to do in order to make our businesses more competitive is to work better,” IEE manager Almudena Semur told CNN Money. “Working more doesn’t help if you don’t work better.”
McDonald’s worker ‘fired for donating food to firefighters’
A McDonald’s employee in the US claims she was fired for donating food to local firefighters – despite paying for it out of her own pocket.
Heather Levia, a 23-year-old single mother, told the Olean Times Herald that she was working an early shift at the restaurant in Olean, New York State, when she took a call from a Salvation Army volunteer asking for food donations for firefighters responding to a house fire in the area.
“I didn’t have the authority to make that kind of decision, so I told them I’d call our corporate offices to see what we could do,” said Levia, who had worked at the restaurant for eight years. When her superiors refused to make the donation, she and two co-workers pooled their money to pay the $150 bill themselves, she said.
Two days later she was fired. According to Levia, the reason given was that she went against the company’s wishes and also that she swore at a senior manager, a claim she denies. “I’m very distraught that I would be fired over something like this,” she said. “I was just trying to give back to the firefighters and they weren’t asking for much.”
However, in a statement to local news outlet News 4, the restaurant’s owner, Tom Meyers, said: “We are aware that certain allegations have been made concerning the reasons for Heather Levia’s termination. Out of respect for Ms Levia and her privacy, it would not be appropriate to comment in detail on the reasons she is no longer employed by our organisation. Still, it should be pointed out that the allegations are absolutely not true. We would never penalise an employee for showing appropriate gratitude for the work of our firefighters.”
Migrant workers Down Under to be schooled in Kiwi chit-chat
Migrant workers in New Zealand are to receive coaching in small talk, after new research from Wellington’s Victoria University found that most don’t understand either how it works or why it is important to workplace relationships.
Linguistics lecturer Meredith Marra told news website Stuff that the university’s Language in the Workplace project – which has analysed thousands of exchanges across several industries – found that bantering and chit-chat were like “social glue” for Kiwi employees, much more so than for Brits or Americans.
But the study also revealed that migrant workers found their colleagues’ verbal interactions confusing. “Something we get reported from employers is that a person’s level of English is not good enough,” said Marra. “[meaning] they just don’t understand the importance of small talk.”
For example, in answer to the question “How are you?” it is typical for migrants to respond with a long, detailed answer rather than the expected, “Fine, thanks, how are you?”
Even migrants with a good grasp of English conversation can struggle with the informal English used in New Zealand workplaces, where colloquialisms such as “Pretty sweet, eh?” are commonplace, even in formal meetings.
To help migrant workers converse more appropriately with their colleagues, the project team has now put together a package of teaching materials focusing on small talk.
Singaporeans get lucky at work
Over a quarter of Singaporeans believe following superstitious practices at their place of work will help them get ahead, according to research by the JobsCentral Group.
The survey, reported by HRM Asia, found that 1,009 out of 3,568 workers in Singapore (28 per cent) regularly indulge in customs at work that are thought to bring luck or ward off misfortune. Of these, 40 per cent admitted to keeping a personal charm in the office while 46 per cent carried or displayed a religious item; 26 per cent wore a prosperous colour and 29 per cent practised feng shui at their workstation – for example, keeping mirrors away from the area to avoid work duplication.
Other practices included taking leave on inauspicious dates such as Friday 13th, wearing clothes featuring lucky animals, practising Pranic healing and reading positive quotes.
According to the survey, the employees most likely to indulge in this kind of behaviour are Generation X males, aged 30 to 45, in managerial or directorial positions and earning around S$5,000 a month. They’re also most likely to be working in sales and marketing or compliance and legal roles.
However, researchers found no strong correlation between job satisfaction and superstitious rituals: while 56 per cent of those who followed auspicious practices were happy in their jobs, 54 per cent of those who did not were also content.
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