经济衰退让老板和员工走得更近

Few bosses need worry that their employees want their jobs as most workers are just happy to be employed and one fifth would even have a fling with their boss if it helped their career, according to a US survey.

The US recession has driven bosses and their employees closer together and only 30 percent of employees want their boss's stressful job, recruitment firm Adecco Staffing US found in a poll tied to National Boss Day in mid-October.

But the survey found that some people are willing to go to greater lengths to keep their jobs in a tough market.

Almost one in five said they would have a fling with their boss if it would help their career and a similar number share connections with their boss through social networking sites like Facebook or LinkedIn.

Striving for the boss's job is not a top priority, though.

Employees with children aged 18 or under at home are more likely (39 percent vs. 23 percent) to want their boss's job to help pay for education and other costs.

With unemployment brushing up against 10 percent, those still working "feel like they were the chosen ones, like they got a vote of confidence from their boss that they're good enough to be retained," said David Adams, Adecco Group North America vice president of learning and development in Seattle.

That, and the smaller number of employees in many departments, strengthened ties between employees and bosses.

"Recession tested people's values and many realize that it's not all about work," said Adams, adding that workers saw peers climb the corporate ladder only to be laid off.

More than three-quarters of bosses said they felt stronger bonds to their employees than three years ago, and 61 percent of the employees agreed.

This may not change any time soon, even though the private-sector National Bureau of Economic Research last month called the recession over as of June 2009.

"Although it's technically over, nobody feels that it is over," said Adams.

根据美国的一项调查，老板们基本上不需要担心员工会抢自己的饭碗，因为大多数员工只要有工作就满足了，五分之一的员工甚至会和老板发生风流韵事以求对事业有所帮助。

人才服务公司德科集团美国分部在一项民意调查中发现，美国的经济衰退拉近了老板和雇员之间的关系，只有30%的员工希望能得到老板那颇具压力的职务。这一调查与10月中旬的“全国老板日”有关。

然而，调查也发现，在市场形势严峻的情况下，有些人愿意更加努力，以求保住自己的工作。

近五分之一的人称，如果对自己的事业有帮助的话，会和老板发生风流韵事。另外，数目与此相当的人通过Facebook和LinkedIn等社交网站和老板分享信息。

尽管如此，努力坐上老板的位置并非他们的首选。

那些家里有未成年孩子的员工更有可能想得到老板的工作（想当老板的占39%，不想当老板的占23%），以帮助支付教育费用和其他开支。

大卫．亚当斯是位于西雅图的德科集团北美分公司学习与发展部的副主管，他说：“由于失业率直逼10%，那些还有工作的人“觉得自己是被上天选中的幸运儿，感觉自己得到了老板的信任票，认为他们足够优秀，可以留下来。”

正是这一点，再加上许多部门的员工数量变少，加强了员工和老板之间的关系。

亚当斯说，“经济衰退使人们的价值观经受了考验，很多人意识到有些事情并不完全和工作相关。他补充说，员工们目睹了一些同事想寻求晋升，结果却被解雇。

超过四分之三的老板称，他们觉得和员工的关系比三年前更近了，61%的员工对此表示认同。

尽管美国私营机构国家经济研究局上个月宣布经济危机已经于2009年6月结束，但目前的状态可能不会在短时间内发生改变。

亚当斯说，“尽管经济危机从理论上来讲已经过去，但是大家都觉得它没有结束。”

Vocabulary:

have a fling with somebody: have a short sexual relationship with somebody（和某人有一段短暂的风流韵事）

go to greater lengths: 尽更大的力量，做出更多努力

brush up against: 碰及，触及

climb the corporate ladder: 晋升，职务升迁