This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
According to a recent Gallup poll, Utah has one of the highest ratios of "disengaged workers" in the nation. Just "28 percent of Utah workers are actively engaged in their work."
I suppose actively engaged means that workers are happy doing what they're doing and look forward to doing more of it. They feel challenged and appreciated, and don't mind working harder.
Gallup gives several reasons for this disengagement, including bosses from hell, boredom and underappreciated efforts. It doesn't say if regular floggings contribute to the problem, but I'll bet they do.
All of these are true. I know because I've been a disengaged employee before. I've worked for bosses with less morality and intellect than that of a rat, and some no more inspiring than compost.
Some (maybe a lot) of this problem was my fault. I have an aberrant personality that doesn't tolerate boredom well (at all).
Also, I don't work well for people I don't consider smarter than me. That's saying something given that I'm not all that smart. But as soon as I figure out that you're a moron … well, the company has a problem.
This should be of concern to bosses everywhere, even bad ones. Companies with engaged workers show better profits, better employee health, better customer satisfaction and fewer on-the-job knife fights.
There's hope. Despite our pathetic showing in the ranks of engaged workers, Utah also has one of the highest employment rates in the nation.
Another bright spot is that companies "with fewer than 10 employees, have higher rates of engagement because workers feel a sense of ownership of their jobs."
This is good news. Sort of. I don't know the exact number of people working for The Salt Lake Tribune right now, but we have to be getting close to 10.
I feel very challenged and inspired by the work I do. I get paid to associate with interesting people (lunatics) and discover new ways to hurt myself. Then, if still capable, I report my findings. It's painful, even agonizing sometimes, but it definitely isn't boring.
I've helped artificially inseminate livestock, fought a mule, branded cows, been shot at, fallen off a cliff, walked across a desert, been slapped and broken some bones. If that stuff doesn't keep your interest up, nothing will.
Sometimes you just get lucky with a job. I'm extremely engaged in my work right now. Only a fool wouldn't be. I just got a new editor.
Since I don't know her well yet, I've had to make some snap judgments in order to keep from becoming permanently disengaged (fired).
For starters, my new editor is Asian. Based on years of my own research, this automatically makes her smarter than me by either quite a bit or one hell of a lot, depending on which scientific measurement is employed.
Also, I've seen the movies. Given her ethnicity, she probably knows all kinds of kung fu, karate and ninja stuff. While this may be inappropriate stereotyping, a guy like me cannot afford to take the chance.
Add to that the fact that my editor is a woman. Every woman I've ever worked for including my wife could read my mind. I can't be disengaged. Hell, I can't even pretend to be engaged. I actually have to be that.
This, of course, brings us to the biggest factor in disengaged employees. My new editor is not a boss from hell. But there is every possibility that she has an employee from there.
Robert Kirby can be reached at rkirby@sltrib.com or facebook.com/stillnotpatbagley. Find his past columns at http://www.sltrib.com/lifestyle/kirby