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Written by Kieran Delamont, Associate Editor, London Inc. | |
TALENT
Rage against the machine
What happens when a disgruntled, departing employee erases important company data on the way out the door?
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DATA IS EXTREMELY valuable to companies, and employees know it. Unfortunately, that also tends to mean the disgruntled employees are keenly aware, and more of them are apt to wipe drives, trash files and delete data right before they quit or are let go ― a new phenomenon dubbed “rage deletion.”
Think of it as a cousin to rage quitting or revenge quitting ― and in many cases, wrote Digiday’s Tony Case, the two phenomenon often go hand in hand. “Nearly one in six workers has experienced a coworker intentionally deleting important company data before quitting a job. One in 20 has personally committed ‘rage deletion,’ with Gen Z employees being twice as likely to admit to doing so,” stated a report from data recovery firm CrashPlan.
“The signs of employee disengagement and dissatisfaction show up in the way they use technology,” said CrashPlan CISO Todd Thorsen. “Obviously, it doesn't usually escalate to sabotage, but our research clearly shows that disengaged employees are less careful with their data.”
Thorsen told Digiday that you can approach this question from the other angle, too ― that disgruntled employees can sometimes be identified by the way they are handling files. “IT teams are often positioned to know about a potential rage-quitter long before HR does,” Thorsen explained. “How people treat the data they produce on the job generally predicts their job satisfaction.”
There’s no doubt that, legally, the deleters are in the wrong here. As insurance expert Gary Hirst told Canadian Underwriter, deleting company data on your way out is just begging to get sued. “It will only take one court case, and cost awards that would perhaps deter others from doing it,” Hirst said.
But as experts point out, the best defense against rage deletion is to address the rage part, not only defend against the deletion part. “The most effective solution to rage deletion,” wrote Canadian Underwriter’s Alyssa DiSabatino, “may be, simply, rage mitigation.”
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BENEFITS
Go on, get outta here!
Good news! The time-off tax ― how much work is required to take vacation ― is shrinking
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THERE’S AT LEAST one tax actually being reduced in the Canadian workforce: the so-called “time-off tax” that estimates how much extra work time ends up being incurred trying to prepare for, or catch up from, taking time off.
It’s a metric that is bad for both workers and their bosses: time off is essential to long-term productivity, but if it means 34 labour hours must be incurred to prep or catch up ― as it did in 2020’s data ― then that comes with a productivity deficit. And for workers, if you’re having to clock 34 hours trying to catch up from some time off, you’re not really reaping the actual benefits of the time off.
The good news is that the time-off tax appears to be dropping. While in 2020 it was 34 hours, and in 2022 it was 20 labour hours, ADP Canada’s latest poll of workers on their vacation practices found that employees are only putting in an additional 13.6 hours to prepare for and catch up from time off.
All that said, part of the reason the time-off tax is dropping is because of a drop in time off. Compared to pre-pandemic, fewer people are taking all their vacation time; only 31 per cent said they did last year, compared to pre-pandemic averages closer to 50 per cent.
The two issues go hand in hand, stated ADP. If it is more painless to take time off, you’re more likely to do it ― and if you do it, you’re more likely to feel and perform better at work. “By offering work-life balance options, flexible deadlines and structured hand off processes, employees can feel more supported as they prepare and return from vacation ― encouraging paid time off rather than fraying from it,” said ADP Canada’s Heather Haslam.
There’s definitely some progress here ― on the evidence, it would seem that workplaces are getting a bit better at facilitating vacation time ― even if its ability to encourage taking vacation time has room for improvement.
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Terry Talks: Leadership in difficult times
| In this week’s Terry Talks, Terry explores how leaders can navigate the uncertainty and change that may arise as Donald Trump returns to office. Leading through challenging moments is a real test for any leader; a chance to put others first, to role model the culture and values of the organization and to demonstrate real care and kindness for the individuals involved. | | | |
WORKFORCE
Bullish on hiring in 2025
If you’re considering a career change, there’s positive news on the horizon. A significant portion of Canadian companies are planning to hire in the coming year
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ALTHOUGH MANY BUSINESSES large and small are on edge regarding a potential tariff war with the U.S., Canadian firms are generally feeling optimistic about hiring in the year ahead, according to a new Harris Poll conducted alongside Express Employment Professionals. Over half – 51 per cent – of the 505 employers surveyed said they plan to increase their headcount in the first half of the year, and 71 per cent feel positive about their hiring outlook over the whole year.
“There is a lot of optimism in the market going into 2025,” said Express franchisor Brent Pollington. “The positive outlook seems to stem from a combination of factors including market conditions, perceptions of continued growth and the potential for lowering interest rates, among other things.”
It’s just one survey, but it posits some green shoots in the economic forecast. Fifty-eight per cent of employers said they are planning on scaling up headcount in response to the volume of work; 45 per cent said they would be creating new positions and 26 per cent cited expansion into new sectors and markets. “The positive sentiments among hiring managers highlight a resilient and forward-thinking workforce,” said Express Employment CEO Bill Stoller.
Another survey came to a similar conclusion, and said that Canada ranked as the top country in which to start a business in 2025 (at least out of the surveyed countries, which include Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia and the UK), according to the 79,000 businesses polled for the Canadian Employer Confidence Index 2025.
“There is an air of cautious optimism amongst employers,” said Alan Price, the COO of the Peninsula Group, which conducted the survey. It found that businesses in Canada are still facing challenges, especially around rising costs and employee retention ― but that these are problems everywhere, not just domestically.
All of which suggests that, by a few subjective metrics at least, there are positive indications about the year ahead. “The outlook for 2025 is promising, driven by a workforce ready to innovate and adapt,” said Stoller. “Businesses are strategically positioning themselves for growth, addressing immediate needs like increased workloads and turnover, while also preparing for future challenges.”
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WORKPLACE
When office lotto pools go bad
Office lottery pools: All fun and games until someone absconds with the winnings
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IT’S THE NIGHTMARE scenario for those who play the lottery with their colleagues: what happens if someone wins big, and then doesn’t hand over the ticket?
This appears to be exactly the question posed to the B.C. Supreme Court recently, which heard the case of four colleagues who were suing one of their coworkers, whom they claim absconded with a winning $2 million lottery ticket.
For a couple years, the coworkers at a B.C. trucking company had played the lotto together. One day, they flick on the news, and who do they see standing there, grinning and holding a big novelty $2 million cheque, but their coworker, Mandeep Singh Maan. But then, naturally, they started to wonder…
The four colleagues ultimately took Maan to court, arguing that since they had discussed buying lotto tickets together regularly, had pooled their money earlier that week, and agreed informally to split the winnings, that they were entitled to their share. Not so fast, argued Maan, whose case was that he bought the ticket separately, with his own money, and his colleagues could not prove otherwise.
Ultimately, the courts sided with Maan: “The parties’ interactions leading up to and after the winning ticket purchase are disputed, the alleged lottery pool agreement was not set out in writing and the documentary record is sparse,” reads a decision by Judge Liliane Bantourakis. “The outcome turns on the answer to a largely factual question: was the winning ticket a group ticket or not?”
The answer was no ― or at least, the coworkers couldn’t prove otherwise. Maan is free to enjoy his winnings.
The moral of the story? No matter how collegial you are with your workmates, get the lottery pool in writing. “Winning the lottery should be a happy event,” wrote Bantourakis. “In this case, sadly, it has ruined relationships.”
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