Happy Employees vs Unhappy Employees

So get a load of this transcript: Work Relationships Matter

The short of it: Microsoft employee John Porcaro has to spend a period in hospital, after suffering third degree burns. He ends up in a shared room.

At one point, a nine-year old boy with a cracked head is in the other bed - knocked from his bike by a car, with a 10 inch wound down his face.

The father rings his workplace (not Microsoft) while visiting his child, asking for 2 weeks leave to care for the family, and requesting access to retirement funds to pay medical bills (a common policy in the US, apparently).

Employer says no.

The employee is two weeks from finishing a full year at the company, which would entitle him under the US Family and Medical Act to both.

Pop quiz:

1. How much do you think that employee feels valued by his employer?
2. What do you think this employee’s productivity is going to be like now?
3. Do you think he’s likely to stay long with the company?
4. Would you regard this employee as a liability to the company?

I’m a personal fan of employee morale - always have been, always will be.

Not least that when reading history, the morale of one side or another is often a deciding factor in winning or defeat, regardless of odds.

If your company is up against a competitor company, which company would you want to have the highest employee morale?

If you can cut corners from your budget, but cause disproportionate loss of employee morale, is your economic saving short-term or long-term? Which should you be aiming for?

Something to think about.