- Workers who interact more frequently with their boss give higher grades
- One in four workers say their boss communicates via text message or instant message
- More than 1 in 5 workers say their boss asks them to do things unrelated to their job
A bad boss is a classic cause of grief at the workplace, but just how common are they? According to a new CareerBuilder survey, a majority of workers think their boss is doing an above-average job. Asked to evaluate their bosses' performance, more than 6 in 10 (63 percent) U.S. workers say their manager deserves an "A" or a "B" while 1 in 7 would assign a "D" or "F" (14 percent).
Additionally, about four in ten workers (39 percent) say they are friends with their boss.
The nationwide survey was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder from February 10 to March 4, 2014, and included a representative sample of 3,022 full-time, private sector workers across industries and company sizes.
Making the Grade
A plurality of workers give their boss a "B" and about 1 in 4 assign a "C":
A: 24 percent
B: 39 percent
C: 23 percent
D: 9 percent
F: 5 percent
Grades appear to be aligned with bosses' communication and management styles. Workers who interact more frequently with their bosses tend to rate their performance better than those who keep their distance. Thirty-one percent of workers who interact several times a day in person with their boss assign them an "A" compared to just 17 percent of workers who interact with their boss once a day or less.
The study also showed a correlation between positive ratings of bosses and open communication even if that communication doesn't take place in person. Twenty-five percent of workers say their boss typically communicates with them via text or instant message. Of those employees, 30 percent assign an "A" to their boss's performance.
"Managers who interact frequently and communicate directly are more likely to have the support of their employees. The ideal form of that communication will vary from individual to individual, but everyone's jobs get done better when expectations and roles are clearly defined," said Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources at CareerBuilder. "The best managers understand the triggers for their workers' success and are able to course correct when productivity drops or conflict arises."
"That's Not What I Signed Up For": The Most Unusual Boss Requests
There is one way, however, bosses can quickly lose workers' trust: giving tasks well outside the job description. Twenty-two percent of employees say their current boss asks them do things unrelated to their jobs, and unsurprisingly, 51 percent of those employees give their bosses grades of "C" or worse.
The following are real requests bosses asked of their employees, as shared by survey respondents.
Asked employee to coach other employees on how to pass a drug test
Asked employee to fire a colleague and then drive them home
Asked for employee's opinions of Tinder profiles
Asked employee to order items on personal Amazon account so boss's spouse wouldn't know about it
Asked employee to pluck a client's unibrow for a photo shoot
Asked that employees "Like" his Facebook videos
Asked if employee would be better friends with him
Asked employee to find out how to obtain death certificate for her deceased ex-husband
Asked employee to commiserate with daughter-in-law about the death of her cat
Asked employee to climb on roof to see if there were any dead birds