UK workplaces are a hotbed of negative management styles that have a serious impact on managers’ job satisfaction, wellbeing and working relationships, according to the latest research.
The quality of working life 2012 report, by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) and Simplyhealth, compared the experiences of more than 1,000 managers in 2007 and 2012. It found that managers today work longer hours because of larger workloads. They are also increasingly suffering from ill health and are more likely to come to work when sick.
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Other findings include that:
- negative management styles prevail in most organisations, the most common being bureaucratic (45%), followed by reactive (33%) and authoritarian (30%);
- the average manager now works around 46 days’ unpaid overtime per year, up from 40 days in 2007;
- presenteeism is on the rise, with 43% believing that people did not take sick leave when they were ill, up from 32% in 2007;
- organisations were less tolerant of people taking sick leave; and
- more managers were suffering from stress and depression, 42% in 2012 against 35% in 2007.
CMI chief executive Ann Francke said of the findings: “If you’re a trusting manager and are good to your people, you can reap big business rewards. If not, you’re causing stress that is damaging the health of your people and the business.”
