Dr. Howatt to be Keynote Speaker at
the Annual Atlantic Canada
Labour & Employee Relations
Conference
Dr. Bill Howatt will give the keynote address at the Annual Atlantic Canada Labour & Employee Relations Conference at Casino Nova Scotia, Halifax, on September 30.
Dr. Howatt will focus on Addressing Employee Morale When Purse Strings Are Tight.
Every organization has a defined output that is either a product or service, and every organization relies on people and processes to achieve this output. Having employees with the necessary knowledge and skills required to achieve the targeted output results is of little value if the employees are not motivated. Cornell University in 2004 reported that presenteeism was estimated to account for 60% of all productivity lost.
This keynote introduces TalOp™ developed by the presenter that will quickly provide the audience with a frame of reference of how operations, talent and health and wellness management are interconnected. This will provide the platform and logic for three things employers can do to increase the likelihood of having motivated employees without breaking the bank.
Oh – and at the same time reducing the risk of employees going on psychological distress related leave that is costing companies in Canada $51 billion a year.
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From the Saint John, New Brunswick, Telegraph-Journal, October 21, 2009
APRIL ROBINSON
TELEGRAPH-JOURNAL
ST. ANDREWS - Bill Howatt has a simple question on the back of his business card: What's the cost of doing nothing?
Bill Howatt, who spoke at conference held on Tuesday, says it’s time businesses recognize they have a responsibility in helping their employees deal with addictions.
If you're talking about workers addicted to drugs and alcohol, that cost adds up to $40 billion in Canada, he said.
But many employers haven't yet realized how employees with addictions affect the bottom line, he said Tuesday at a conference put on by Enterprise Charlotte and the Charlotte Drug Coalition at the Fairmont Algonquin Hotel.
"The reality is if one in four people have an addictive disorder, one out of four people have a mental health issue, then we have a lot of concerns," he said in an interview after he lectured a room full of business professionals from Charlotte County and across the province.
"Employers can't take the attitude that people leave their junk at the door," he said. "It's our job to get involved. I don't think people are interchangeable anymore."
Howatt, a renowned human resources expert who also writes a monthly business column for the Chronicle Herald in Halifax, said it's also the law.
"You have to ask, what's the risk to your organization by avoiding it, and if something happens, and you knew (about the addiction), then you're legally liable for not doing something about it," he said.
Howatt encouraged employers to train managers in interventions, presenting a list of steps he thinks all businesses should incorporate into their standard operating procedures.
Among the most important steps, he said, is to treat the worker with dignity and respect - and to understand if they are under the influence, they won't act rationally.
"There's a stigma, and we have a tendency when we don't understand something to judge it," he told the group. "We need, as best as we can, not to judge."
A poor attitude can also leak into hiring practices, he said, which also need improvement.
Often, employers seem to hire people blindly, he said. He referenced a study that showed people with higher scores during interviews actually performed worse as employees.
"We hire too much on credentials. We don't hire to potential," he said.
That aside, Howatt listed off some of the ways drug and alcohol additions affect people's productivity.
Dependability decreases, along with memory, work quality, motivation and job skills.
"Drugs change your brain," he said. "They will change your effect, your emotion."
He also addressed the myth that marijuana doesn't affect some people's motor skills and concentration.
He said pot and other drugs socially and emotionally delay people.
"It stifles their ability to reach their potential," he said.
Other addictions, such as gambling, sex and the Internet, can also have negative effects on people's work habits, he said.
Kelly Wilson, chairwoman of the Charlotte Drug Coalition, said area businesses have expressed a growing concern with addictions in the workplace.
"The acceptance of substance abuse from employees was something they were concerned about," said Wilson, who works for the John Howard Society.
"People are looking at new norms that it is socially acceptable to use substances before they go to work, while they're there, during break times, lunch times."
She said employers are worried about worker safety and lost productivity, and want a better understanding of their rights. |
