Fa La La La La or Bah Humbug for the Holiday Season in the Workplace

Employees responding to two different surveys cited what they like most and like least about the holiday season in the workplace.

Workers can either be more cheerful or more stressed in the workplace during the holiday season, according to two surveys.

 

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In a recent survey of professionals from staffing firm Accountemps, more than half (51%) said they are more cheerful at work during the holidays. When asked to identify what they loved most about holidays in the workplace, respondents to a Randstad US survey cited “holiday spirit in the workplace” (54%) and “happier/more generous co-workers” (41%).

 

Thirty-five percent of respondents said they are more stressed on the job this time of year, according to Accountemps. They cited balancing holiday events and work obligations (32%), taking time off and coming back to heavy workloads (23%), and having fewer people on the job to help (18%) as the most stressful aspects of the holiday season.

 

Respondents to the Randstad survey said holiday parties and questions like, “Should I give my boss a gift?” are stressors this time of year. Ninety percent of employees said they would prefer to get a bonus or extra vacation days than have a holiday party. Sixty-two percent of respondents agreed they feel obligated to attend their employer’s holiday party, and 28% said they feel obligated to buy their boss a holiday gift,

 

As for the gift that would bring the most cheer, professionals surveyed by Accountemps cited higher year-end bonuses (37%), more flexible work schedules (32%) and additional paid vacation time (17%). Similarly, for 70% of workers surveyed by Randstad “time off” topped their list of what they love about the season, while 34% look forward to getting a bonus.

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