Indian corporates may register a significant drop in productivity during February-March 2011 as one in five employees plans to take time off or reduce working hours to watch the ICC World Cup cricket matches, the resuls of a random survey by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) show.
The survey showed that the impact of the mega event, slated to be co-hosted by India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka from February 19-April 2, would not only impact the productivity but also studies of students as the games will taking place around the same time as their final examinations.
The survey, conducted in January and early February, was released by Mr. D S Rawat, Secretary General, ASSOCHAM, here today. It covered 2,000 corporate employees and 2,000 students in the age groups 14-20, 21-30, 31-45 and 46 -55 years in cities such as Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Cochin, Indore, Ahmedabad, Surat, Mumbai, Pune, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Lucknow, and Kanpur.
The report said that, for businesses, this could translate into millions of manhours of lost productivity.
"At least 10-12 million people will watch the match and result in a productivity loss of 768 million man hours (12 million x 8 hours x 8 matches), apart from stress faced by mothers during exams. 85% of Indian students study during the month of March for their exams. The time spent on studies may now be spent over watching television," it said.
The actual level of absenteeism is likely to be even higher, due to post-match celebrations or lack of sleep, as fans stay up late to watch the games, it said.
The report said that the presence of Australia, Sri Lanka, England, South Africa and Pakistan teams in the World Cup was likely to boost the level of interest in the games. The productivity slump from the World Cup is going to continue till March, the analysts.
According to the report, 20 per cent of the respondents in the survey indicated their intention to take at least some time off from work to watch the matches. Just over half of the respondents said they intended to work shorter days for much of the month-long event, with the rest indicating that they planned either to request days off using their annual leave, or simply call in sick.
The report said workplace productivity in India was expected to drop over the ICC World Cup, with several matches slated to be played during office hours.
"Workplace productivity is bound to be affected and employers should be concerned about the issue of employee absenteeism and the resulting productivity loss," the report said.
The survey also asked employers and those in managerial positions whether they would allow their subordinates time off to watch the games. The majority of the respondent said that it is the greatest sporting event on the world stage and people should be given a chance to enjoy something that had nothing to do with politics and violence.
A majority of the CEOs said watching the games was a personal decision and up to the individual. However, it should not come at the expense of the organization, the majority of the CEO-respondents said.
The report said 35 per of respondents said that their employers were actually providing a place at work for employees to watch the games, and because the event is pay-per-view. 85% of the respondent expressed great interest in the World Cup, but one in five said they would not have access to watching the matches on television.
As many as 45% of seniors said that they would be happy to allow the World Cup into the workplace, perhaps, because they share their subordinates’ cricket obsession. "It is really motivating if employees are allowed to watch the World Cup during their work day at the company and it as a way to boost their co-workers’ team spirit," they said.
The report said that, to combat the loss to productivity, it was imperative that companies put in place measures that could minimise the impact of disruptions due to absenteeism on productivity, while at the same time accommodating the preference of employees who will be keen to watch World Cup games.
The survey called for a clear policy on the frequency and conditions of World Cup- related absence that employees could enjoy. Secondly firms should develop a match roster that shows selected popular matches at work to avoid staff leaving the office for long hours, it said.
The report said 46 per cent of the senior officers said that this occasion could be ideally used for a team-building and morale-boosting exercises. Also, companies should allow flexi-hours at work, at least for the duration of the World Cup, it said.
The report said companies could have television sets at the workplace for employees to watch specific matches and set daily or weekly measurable milestones for employees who can take time off to watch matches once objectives are met.
About 86% of the CEOs said companies would have a tough time dealing with their employees during such days. Most of the staff, even the managers, might leave early to catch the matches as often cricket and sporting websites are blocked from their corporate networks. Employees may keep track of the scores over SMS or over mobile internet but working hours are seldom completely used.
About 20% of survey participants indicated that they would be taking some time off. Just over half of these intended to work shorter days, with the rest indicating that they planned either to request days off using their annual leave, or simply report sick and stay at home to watch the games. Overall, 85% of those surveyed said they would like to watch the World Cup.
However, one in five of those interested said that they would not be able to do so as they did not have access to a TV channel showing the games. Only 5% of respondents reported having facilities provided by their employer to watch the World Cup in their place of work.
FEROZ SHAH KOTLA (New Delhi, India) 
