Who's the Boss? (And Why it Matters)

In the film “Horrible Bosses,” any resemblance to real or living people may have been purely coincidental, but for many American workers, the portrayal represents a familiar daily reality in the workplace: their bosses are making them miserable. And sick. The Journal of Business and Psychology reported that workers’ health can be adversely affected by a negative psychological climate, which can lead to a slew of health-related problems, including heart disease and depression.

Adding insult to injury is the fact that CEOs make 380 times more than the average worker. The average compensation for a CEO rose almost 727 percent between the years 1978 and 2011—more than twice the increase in S&P’s 500-stock index—while pay for the average nonsupervisory worker in the private sector rose less than 6 percent during that same period. While employees generally accept that their boss is going to earn more than they do , they rest assured that with the additional money probably come a proportionate amount of stress and anxiety. As Robert Frost wryly noted, “By working faithfully eight hours a day you may eventually get to be boss and work twelve hours a day.” On the contrary, however, research indicates that those in high leadership positions actually experience less stress than those in non-leadership positions.

So are bosses worth it? A new study suggests that they can make a significant impact on company productivity and through a seemingly simple act: they teach their employees useful skills. Their employees may not be particularly motivated by bosses, but they are learning from them—at least from the good ones. This infographic examines the impact of management on workers and how much bosses may actually be worth.

Sources:

Bosses Less Stressed than Workers, Study Says, AOL Jobs, 2012
CEO Pay is 380 Times Average Worker’s—AFL-CIO, CNN Money, 2012
The Impact of Bad Bosses, The Atlantic, 2012

For a complete list of sources, please view the infographic.

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