By: Mark Fitzgerald Sigmund Freud asked it about women, but publishers in these shaky days are asking a wider and gender-neutral question: What do workers want?
Though many newspapers fear negative readings if they take the temperatures of their staffs during a time of budget-tightening, many more understand that not knowing what employees think is even riskier, said Ellen Bernstein, a newspaper human-relations consultant who is also publisher of
The Advocate, a weekly in North Adams, Mass.
Bernstein helped create the newest version of the "Employee Attitude Survey" offered by the Des Plaines, Ill.-based Inland Press Association. New survey questions probe employees on the changes in the newspaper workplace environment.
"It gives [employees] a chance to spill their guts and tell what they feel about the paper," Inland Executive Director Ray Carlsen said of the confidential survey.
The survey assesses, among other factors, the paper's overall morale level, and identifies departments or work groups where attitudes are significantly negative or positive. Employees also rate the management and communication skills of their bosses -- something Inland says can be a morale-booster on its own. Results are compared to industrywide norms and include a written evaluation with recommendations.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here