QUESTION: I have heard that Congress is currently considering a bill called “The Employee Free Choice Act.” What is the bill about, and how will it impact employers?

ANSWER

In 2007, 20 percent of employed persons did some or all of their work at home on days that they worked, and 87 percent did some or all of their work at their workplace, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports in its American Time Use Survey.

The survey focuses on the average amount of time per day in 2007 that Americans worked, did household activities, cared for family, participated in educational activities, and engaged in leisure activities. It finds that although employees worked an average of 7.6 hours on the days that they work, they worked longer during a weekday (7.9 hours) than on a weekend day (5.6 hours). Multiple jobholders (62 percent) were almost twice as likely to work on an average weekend day as were single jobholders (33 percent). Employed men worked at their jobs about three quarters of an hour more than employed women, but women spent more time on household activities than men, according to the survey.

A recent Towers Perrin survey of 90,000 employees in 18 countries revealed that most employees (86 percent) liked or loved their job, 77 percent liked or loved their company, and 73 percent liked or loved their boss. “In the U.S., this optimism was even greater, with 82 percent of respondents saying they liked or loved their company and 83 percent saying they liked or loved their boss,” says Towers Perrin.

The survey also debunked other workplace myths—most survey respondents (86 percent) felt that the increase use of technology such as cell phones, laptops, and personal electronic devices helped them achieve some level of balance between their personal and professional lives. The study also found that senior leadership, not the first-line manager, was the single most important factor in employees’ engagement and performance. “We’ve found that a company’s reputation and its senior leadership wield enormous influence over employee attitudes,” says Towers Perrin spokesman Max Caldwell. “When these factors combine with positive direct-manager relationships, organizations can cultivate even more positive environments for their workforce.”