Microserfs and Union Yes!

This excerpt from the MediaPost Research Brief underscores two things:

1. Gen is are the hardest workers in our society, not the rumored slackers. Remember the book Microserfs? I guess lots of companies are expecting fealty.

2. While we metaphorically slept, the American worker has taken dozens of steps backawards as regards quality of life. One of the biggest changes in that same period of time is the decline in the percentage of Americans represented by unions. Is it an odd coinkydink or is it a Mr. Burns coinkydink?



Another index declining this year is the shrinking of America's leisure time, according to the latest results from The Harris Poll, tracking America's leisure time since 1973. The poll finds that The median number of leisure hours available each week dropped 20% in 2008, from 20 hours in 2007, to an all-time low of only 16 hours this year. This continues a trend which has seen America's median weekly leisure time shrink 10 hours from 26 hours per week in 1973.
The Harris Interactive survey of 1,010 adults between October 16 and 19, 2008 found that:
• The biggest changes this year in how people are using their precious leisure time were in TV watching (up 6 points), exercise (up 3 points) and spending time with family and kids (up 3 points)
• Since 1995 the largest changes in how people are spending their leisure time are exercising (up 6 points), computer activities (up 5 points), spending time with family and kids (up 5 points) and swimming (down 5 points)
• 30% of Americans say their favorite activity is reading (up from 29% in 2007) while 24% say it is TV watching and 17% say it is spending time with family and kids (up from 14% in 2007). Rounding out the top five leisure time activities are exercise (8%) and computer activities and fishing (each at 7%);
• The median amount of time spent working, including housekeeping and studying, is now at 46 hours per week, slightly from 45 hours in 2007. In 1973, when this question was first asked, the median was 41 hours a week
• Generation Xers (ages 32-43) are working the most hours (55 each week), followed by 50 hours each week for Echo Boomers (18-31) and Baby Boomers (44-62). As many Matures are retired, they are only working 15 hours each week.
In 2008, Americans increased their work week one hour, yet claim to have lost four hours of leisure time. As the American economic situation worsened, opined the report, people who were worried about their jobs spent more time "just checking in" via computer or wireless device and didn't consider it as time working, nor did they count it as leisure time.

Mark my words, peoplel, 2009 is going to be the firt year in I don't know how many where unions grow in America. And based upon the figures above, thank God for that!

Thanks fo rreading, and don't forget ot write.