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"Lucky to have a job." This phrase, one might assume, is often heard these days. Indeed, it might seem that other work conditions are not as important in comparison. But research begs to differ.
What makes a good job today? Which aspects are important to employees and where are they willing to make sacrifices? And, most importantly, how does organizational practice respond to these? These questions were tackled by a team of researchers from the RespectResearchGroup and the Rotterdam School of Management. In a first study with almost 600 employees of different companies, they asked how important employees rate issues of respect with regard to their colleagues and supervisors, and how they would rank the issue of interpersonal respect at the workplace in comparison to other issues such as work safety, salary, career opportunities, and other aspects.
Right at the top of most employees' wish list: Having a supervisor who treats me with respect. Here it is not only the appreciation of the employees themselves, but also a recognition of their work that matters to employees. Importantly, this aspect scored far above having a high salary or having plenty of leisure time.
A second survey wave with about 320 employees revealed, however, that the mundane reality looks very different. Respectful supervisors are apparently hard to find. Supervisors are often seen as being neither respectful towards employees as persons nor do they show true appreciation for employees' work. Elaborate documentations and presentations are often only scanned for a few seconds and then filed away—never to be seen again, never to be appreciated. Or pressure from above is directly translated into choleric fits towards employees.
Possibly as a reaction, it is thus hardly surprising that the same study also revealed that many of the employees find it hard to respect their supervisor in his/her authority. These findings are particularly troubling against the plethora of research that suggests that a lack of interpersonal respect, be it of the vertical kind for authority or of the horizontal kind for persons in general, goes hand in hand with a deterioration of group orientation. No respect = no sense of we = no effort for the company.
Thus, my message for whoever would like to lead: Learn how to respect others and behave in a way so that they can respect you. Not only will you feel better, but your performance results will eventually also prove that you are on the right track.
References: van Quaquebeke, N., Zenker, S., & Eckloff, T. (2009). Find out how much it means to me! The importance of interpersonal respect in work values compared to perceived organizational practices. Journal of Business Ethics 89, 423-431. http://www.springerlink.com/content/02m721w186440846/
