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Unhappy on the job?
Co-op programs may increase workplace satisfaction
Michael Hlinka
Statistics Canada reported that in March, unemployment stood at 6.3 per cent, levels we haven't seen in 35 years. The labour market hasn't been this strong in most of our memories...even lifetimes.
How good is the employment picture? A Canadian citizen aged sixteen years or older is more likely to have a job than an American of similar age. It's absolutely remarkable!
However, at the same, another Statscan study found more recent college and university graduates feel they’re over-qualified for their first jobs. Job dissatisfaction seems to be rising (at least for new hires) precisely at the same time unemployment falls.
How can we reconcile this seeming inconsistency? It may best be explained by an "equation" I saw Canadian designer Don Watt present many years ago: H = R / E, where H stands for happiness; R for reality and E for expectations.
To decipher, here's what Watt was suggesting: Happiness is a function of your current reality compared to your expectations. In other words, there are two paths to achieving a high level of happiness...you can either have a great reality or low expectations!
The problem with education, of course, is that while it adds important skills, it also tends to raise the expectations of graduates, thereby diminishing their happiness--at least in the short run.
Moreover, there's an intersection of other important trends in the nature of work that exacerbate this dissatisfaction. The world of business has been opened up and opportunities are sprouting up in a way that was unimaginable a generation ago.
At the same time, because employment is becoming more complex, it's increasingly difficult for entrants into the labour market to add value immediately. In addition to the formal instruction provided by colleges and universities, on the job training is also necessary.
Which places the employer on the horns of a dilemma. Recent grads don't add to the bottom line right away. Rather, they detract from it. As a result, they can't be paid very much. Necessity dictates the tasks given them are remedial ones.
And when you consider this is supposed to be a supplier's market, frustration mounts. But there is a solution. Particularly in a functional area like purchasing, it strikes me that there are wonderful opportunities for progressive employers to integrate new employees into the workplace prior to graduation through co-op or internship programs.
Then from day one you've got a fully trained, productive…and satisfied employee.
Michael Hlinka provides daily business commentary to CBC Radio One and a bi-weekly column that is syndicated across the CBC network. He also conducts financial planning courses.
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