Work staff to death… it’s good for them

Britons fear making presentations more than they fear death, according to a new survey.

A study of public speaking and presentation skills in the UK has uncovered that although half of UK workers present to large audiences as part of their jobs, just as many (42%) fear the prospect of speaking in public more than losing their jobs (16%), flying (8%) or even death (28%).

So workers no longer fear death, eh? Conclusive proof, Guru would say, that staff no longer work hard enough. Don your rose-tinted spectacles for a moment and hark back to the good old days, when staff would claim they were being ‘worked to death’. These days it’s all about flexible working and maternity rights, days in lieu and free hugs for every employee decent enough to come through the door before midday.

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So let’s do everyone a favour and cut back on these so-called ‘work-life balance’ measures, which are clearly detrimental to employees’ enjoyment of life.

If you fear presentations more than death, surely you have no real appreciation of the gift of life. If HR takes the lead and puts the fear of death into people through hard work, the rest of their lives will be so much more rewarding.