Low morale at the workplace

The holiday season is here and the infectious festive spirit has entered homes. However, along with all the plum cake, carolling and Christmas parties comes the increased workload for professionals. With the end of the year being the busiest period for the retail, BPO, hospitality, travel and tourism industries, employees often suffer from ‘elf-esteem’ — a condition where they feel ‘smaller’, overworked and not appreciated, despite their contributions to the workplace.
The month of December being the season of weddings, festivals and New Year madness, sees a heavy influx of clients who are eager to look their best for the evening do. “We have choc-a-bloc appointments, making our work schedules tighter,” explains beauty technician Renuka Rai, “There is no room for mistakes because our profession deals with how people look. Fussy, dissatisfied clients add to the stress and it does make one feel overworked and small. If clients are unhappy, the management is unhappy, resulting in a tense work environment,” she laments. With only a weekday off, she will land up missing most of the seasons’ parties.
Increased customer activity this month also means that employees of the BPO industry spend hours getting back-to- back calls from frustrated clients, but no show of appreciation from the management. “Customers suddenly come alive every holiday season,” says Nelson Hoover, a 20-year-old call-centre employee, “Normal eight-hour work schedules increase to 10-hour marathons. Taking leave is discouraged and Christians do not get preference. On Christmas Eve, when my family will be in church attending mass, I will be in office,” he adds, dejected. He will also bring in the New Year attending phone calls.
Service industries usually experience double the workload and the stress, but store manager’s like the 21-year-old Riti Bora have accepted it as part of the game. She says, “The service industry is a face-to-face industry where no matter how stressed you are and how unappreciated you feel, you have to grin and bear it. The holiday season demands more than 100 percent involvement.”