Why employers should let workers surf the web

Farhad Manjoo from Slate writes:

…There’s no empirical evidence that unfettered access to the Internet turns people into slackers at work. The research shows just the opposite. Brent Corker, a professor of marketing at the University of Melbourne, recently tested how two sets of workers—one group that was blocked from using the Web and another that had free access—perform various tasks. Corker found that those who could use the Web were 9 percent more productive than those who couldn’t. Why? Because we aren’t robots; people with Web access took short breaks to look online while doing their work, and the distractions kept them sharper than the folks who had no choice but to keep on task.

Corker’s finding fits in with a long line of research that shows distractions can sometimes be good for the mind. Doodling, for instance, helps us stay more alert at meetings. Indeed, Daniel Pink, the author of the upcoming Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, has pointed out that some of the world’s most innovative companies are also the most relaxed about goof-off workers. At Google—which, like most big tech firms, imposes no restrictions on workers’ computers—people are encouraged to spend time doing stuff that is unrelated to their jobs. Everyone at Pixar is allowed to spend many hours every week attending classes on filmmaking, painting, drawing, creative writing, and other subjects. And Netflix has no vacation plan—people can take as much time off as they like as long as their work gets done.

There is a jargony HR phrase that describes these forward-looking firms: They’re called “results-only workplace environments,” where people are judged on what they produce, not how. As Netflix CEO Reed Hastings once told a reporter, “I want managers to come to me and say, ‘Let’s give a really big raise to Sally because she’s getting a lot done’—not because she’s chained to her desk.” This jibes with Pink’s argument that it’s a sense of autonomy—rather than money—that drive employees to work hard. People work best, he argues, when they feel they’re being left alone to do their jobs. But it’s hard to feel that way if your computer is constantly throwing up roadblocks in your path.

The Distribution of Federal Taxes, 2009-2012

From the Tax Policy Center‘s The Distribution of Federal Taxes, 2009-12:

Overall, the federal tax system is progressive: on average, households with higher incomes pay taxes that are a larger share of their income. Under current law, our tax laws will change markedly in each of the next few years, significantly altering the system’s progressivity between now and 2012. This paper summarizes the Tax Policy Center’s latest estimates of the distribution of federal taxes for each year from 2009 through 2012.

HT: Paul L. Caron

The Continued Ascent of Federal Pay

The Bureau of Economic Analysis has released its annual data on compensation levels by industry. The data show an expanding pay advantage for federal civilian workers over private-sector workers.

Figure 1 shows at average wages. In 2008, the average wage for 1.9 million federal civilian workers was $79,197, compared to an average $49,935 for the nation’s 108 million private sector workers.

Figure 2 shows that the federal advantage is even larger when worker benefits are included. In 2008, federal worker compensation averaged $119,982,smore than double the private sector average of $59,909.

Google is not a search engine

HT: Information is Beautiful

$15,000 for each USPS employee who leaves

MSNBC reports,

The Postal Service is offering $15,000 buyouts to employees in an effort to cut costs at a time when the post office is being buffeted by the recession and the popularity of e-mail and electronic bill payment.

Up to 30,000 employees could take the offer at a total cost of about $450 million, the agency said Tuesday. The post office said it could save as much as $500 million in the next two years.

The agency said it reached an agreement on the buyout offer with the American Postal Workers Union and the National Postal Mail Handlers Union.

Every dollar from the $15,000 comes from taxes. The only reason a buyout is required is because these workers are unionized.

This is just another example of unions hurting the American population at large.

How the Average Family Pays for College

(Click to enlarge)

According to NPR,

Students are starting to show signs of putting off school for now. Fewer students said they would rather borrow than not attend college this year, with 53 percent compared to 67 percent last year. It may also be that budget-conscious students have become more wary of debt and are economizing by choosing cheaper schools. Students who borrowed money spent 30 percent more on tuition than those who did not.

HT: Andrew Sullivan

The Success of a Privatized Fire District

The Heartland Institute ran an interesting story about a privatized fire district. And wouldn’t you know it, it saved money and boasted efficiency:

“Our first-year contract was $300,000, and we were providing the same level of service the consultant said would cost $1 million,” Jensen said. “We continue to provide service as good as that of our municipal neighbors, but because we are private, we can operate more efficiently. We save 30 to 40 percent over what a similar municipal department would cost to operate.”

Click here to read more.

Quote of the Day

“Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good. In area after area – crime, education, housing, race relations – the situation has gotten worse after the bright new theories were put into operation. The amazing thing is that this history of failure and disaster has neither discouraged the social engineers nor discredited them.”

~ Thomas Sowell

Voting With Your Feet, Part II

The Wall Street Journal reports:

A stream of hedge-fund managers and other financial-services professionals are quitting the U.K., following plans to raise top personal tax rates to 51%.

Lawyers estimate hedge funds managing close to $15 billion have moved to Switzerland in the past year, with more possibly to come. David Butler, founder of professional-services firm Kinetic Partners, said his company had advised 23 hedge funds on leaving the U.K. in the 15 months to April. An additional 15 are close to quitting the U.K., he said.

“In the past, managers would say they’d move some operations or dip their toe in the water,” Mr. Butler said. “Now that’s changed.”

Hedge fund Amplitude Capital took its $735 million in assets under management to Switzerland at the start of this year. In May, Odey Asset Management threatened to move.

Like I wrote in Part I, “What good is a high tax to “help people”….if it drives away all the taxable income?”

GOA: High-Speed Rail’s Economic Benefits are Questionable

According to a Government Accountability Office’s comprehensive report on high-speed rail:

While some U.S. corridors have characteristics that suggest economic viability, uncertainty associated with rider and cost estimations and the valuation of public benefits makes it difficult to make such determinations on individual proposals. Research on rider and cost has shown they are often optimistic and the extent that U.S. sponsors quantify and value public benefits vary.