世界各地的養老金計劃紛紛陷入了危機 員工積極性暴跌
Royal Mail has said that it may not be able to afford its staff’s defined benefit pension scheme beyond 2018.
皇家郵政(Royal Mail)表示，其可能無力負擔2018年以後員工的固定收益養老金計劃(defined benefit pension scheme)。
The venerable UK postal business is unlikely to be the only company to take this drastic measure.
這家歷史悠久的英國郵政公司不太可能是唯一一家採取這種極端舉措的公司。
The collapse in government bond yields, which pension funds use to calculate their ability to pay future benefits, has tipped schemes around the world into crisis.
由於政府債券收益率——養老基金用此類收益率計算自己在未來支付福利金的能力——暴跌，世界各地的養老金計劃紛紛陷入了危機。
Plunging annuity rates mean the future looks grim, too, for workers with defined contribution pensions, who have to provide for their own retirements with the proceeds of what they have paid into their plans.
而由於年金收益率直線下跌，參加固定繳費養老金計劃(defined contribution pensions)的員工看起來也晚景黯淡，他們所繳費用的投資所得是要作爲自己退休之用的。
The gloomy pensions scene is one way in which life has deteriorated for developed-world workers.
養老金的嚴峻狀況是發達國家勞動者生活水平下滑的一個方面。
Real wages for most people have been stagnant while executive pay has soared.
大多數人的實際工資停滯不前，而高管的薪酬則飆漲。
Add to that automation, outsourcing and job losses because of low-cost competition and it is no surprise that surveys show employees are discontented, disengaged and mistrustful.
讓事情雪上加霜的還有自動化、外包，以及低成本競爭帶來的失業，難怪調查表明大量員工心懷不滿、不敬業、不信任公司。
The most recent annual Edelman Trust Barometer, produced by the public relations company, showed that large numbers of workers no longer trusted the company they worked for.
公關公司愛德曼(Edelman)發佈的最新《愛德曼信任度調查報告》(Edelman Trust Barometer)表明，有很大一部分員工不再信任他們所效力的公司。
In Japan, only 40 per cent trusted their employers.
在日本，只有40%的員工信任他們的僱主。
In France it was 48 per cent and 57 per cent in the UK.
法國和英國的這個比例分別爲48%和57%。
In the US, nearly two-thirds of employees trusted their companies but that has to be set against other downbeat US surveys.
在美國，有近三分之二的員工信任他們所在的公司，但這個結果還需要和其他較爲悲觀的調查結果相對照。
Gallup’s most recent polling of the US workforce showed that 34.1 per cent were engaged, which meant they worked with passion and felt a profound connection to their company.
蓋洛普(Gallup)最近的美國員工調查表明，34.1%的員工敬業(engaged)，這意味着他們在工作中懷有激情，並且感到與他們的公司有一種深刻的聯繫。
Another 16.5 per cent were actively disengaged, which meant they were not just unhappy but were undermining their colleagues’ work.
16.5%的員工積極不敬業(actively disengaged)，這表示他們不僅自己不快樂，還會影響同事的工作。
The largest group, 49.5 per cent, were simply not engaged.
49.5%的員工不敬業，所佔比例最大。
They had mentally checked out and were just going through the motions.
他們精神上已經打卡下班，在工作中敷衍了事。
This may not look that bad: over a third were enthusiastic about their jobs and many of the others were at least not getting in anyone’s way.
有一點看起來可能沒那麼糟糕：超過三分之一的員工對工作懷有熱情，其他員工中也有很大一部分至少不妨礙別人工作。
you.could paint an even brighter gloss on Gallup’s figures by noting that the engaged figures are the highest it has recorded.
根據蓋洛普的調查數據，你還可以描繪出一幅更美好的畫面：敬業員工的比例是有記錄以來最高的。
Between 2000 and 2013, the proportion of US workers found to be engaged never rose above 30 per cent.
從2000年到2013年，美國敬業員工比例從未超過30%。
But it is going to get worse.
但情況會越來越糟糕。
The employees of the future are the least happy: only 29 per cent of millennials feel engaged with their work.
未來一代的僱員們是最不快樂的：只有29%的千禧一代感到自己對工作很投入。
Workplace satisfaction questionnaires have their critics.
有人對職場滿意度調查提出了批評。
A 2014 survey of the research in Human Resource Development Quarterly concluded that there was no consensus on what employee engagement was and that it was difficult to draw conclusions about what helped or hindered it.
2014年《人力資源發展季刊》發表的一份對此類研究的調查得出結論，對於員工敬業的定義並無共識，也很難就哪些因素會促進或者削弱員工敬業度下結論。
But most of us can probably recognise Gallup’s findings.
但我們大多數人很可能都能親身感受到蓋洛普調查中所發現的情況。
In more than 40 years of visiting the US I have, as a customer, noticed the growing bifurcation of employee attitudes: there is a group who is still delighted to serve you and a growing number who seems to think your turning up has ruined their day.
40多年來我多次訪美，作爲一個顧客，我注意到員工工作態度的日益分化：有一部分人依然很高興爲你服務，但越來越多的人似乎認爲你的出現毀掉了他們的一天。
Employee disenchantment has costs beyond poor customer service: absenteeism, shoddy work and high turnover.
員工對工作不再熱衷除了會導致對客戶服務不周以外，還有許多壞處：曠工、工作敷衍了事、員工流動性高。
So given that pension problems and low-cost competition are not going away, what, other than slashing their top executives’ salaries, can employers do about staff unhappiness?
因此，考慮到養老金的難題和低成本競爭不會消失，僱主們除了削減高管薪資以外，還能做些什麼來解決員工不滿呢？
First, make sure their companies are well considered.
首先，確保企業在員工心中形象良好。
One of the questions Gallup asks is whether the mission or purpose of the company makes staff feel their jobs are important.
蓋洛普提出的一個問題是，公司的使命或者目標是否讓員工感覺他們的工作很重要？
Companies should not be misled by the word mission.
企業不應被使命這個詞誤導。
Mission statements count for little.
有關使命的陳述無足輕重。
This is about whether people are proud to tell their friends, family and neighbours that they work for the company.
重要的是人們是否能夠自豪地告訴朋友、家人和鄰居，他們爲某家公司工作。
That means providing a decent service, not becoming a constant source of complaint on social media and staying out of trouble.
這意味着企業要提供良好的服務，避免成爲社交媒體上被抱怨連連的對象，不要捲入麻煩。
Nobody is proud to work for a company embroiled in scandal.
沒人會因爲在一家深陷醜聞的企業工作而感到自豪。
Second, companies cannot tell staff to take care of their own pension provision, thus expecting them to take adult responsibility for their retirement, and then treat them like children in every other way.
第二，企業不能告訴員工自己搞定養老金規劃，這無異於期望員工對自己的退休生活承擔起成人的責任，然而在其他任何一個方面都把他們當成孩子。
Excessive monitoring and control are the enemies of an engaged workforce.
過多的監控和控制是打造一支敬業員工隊伍的大敵。
Explaining to people what you expect of them and letting them use their initiative to achieve it is the hallmark of effective management.
告訴員工你期望他們達到什麼目標，讓他們發揮主動性來實現目標，這纔是有效的管理。
If employers fail to improve the lives of their workers, what can employees do themselves? Working takes up such a large proportion of our lives.
如果僱主無法改善其員工的處境，員工們自己怎麼做呢？工作在我們的人生中佔如此巨大的比重。
It is a shame to spend it unhappy, seething or just switched off.
在工作中不快樂、一肚子火乃至失去興趣，委實是一種遺憾。
If you have poor managers, look elsewhere for validation: to your colleagues or, if you deal with them directly, your customers.
如果你攤上了糟糕的管理者，不妨試着從別的地方找到認可：比如同事，或者客戶，如果你直接和他們打交道的話。
Treating them well even when your company does not is likely to leave you, as well as them, far happier.
善待客戶，即使你的公司並不是這樣，這很可能會讓你和那些客戶都快樂得多。
It is also a way of improving your reputation and increasing the chances of a job offer from someone who notices and appreciates you.
這也有助於提高你個人的聲譽，假如有人注意並賞識你的話，也有可能爲你帶來工作機會。
This month, a mother wrote a Facebook tribute to a London Underground worker called Pip, who, for years, has been making sure that pregnant women have seats during the rush hour.
本月有一位母親在Facebook上發文稱讚一位名叫皮普(Pip)的倫敦地鐵(London Underground)員工，皮普多年來一直盡力確保孕婦在交通高峯期有位子可坐。
Many others said he had helped them too.
很多人也表示皮普曾幫助過他們。
We all like praise from our bosses. But being praised like Pip is far better.
我們都喜歡得到老闆的表揚，但像皮普這樣得到顧客稱讚要美妙得多。
