Figuratively Speaking: Easter Ecommerce; Remote Workers; Workplace Ageism

Easter Online shopping

* Approximate amount American ecommerce stores netted in sales during the week before Easter in 2023, according to data from ecommerce marketers Omnisend: $83 million.

* Percent more than any other week in April that year: 30.

* Amount the National Retail Foundation predicts American consumers will spend to celebrate Easter in 2024: $22.7 billion.

* Percent of that amount that will be spent online: 13, or $3 billion.

* Percent of Americans who will be celebrating Easter in 2024: 70, making Easter the third most celebrated event in the US after Christmas and Thanksgiving.

Remote workers  

Preply, an online language tutoring platform, in February surveyed 1,360 Americans about how they interact on work video calls to find out how body language changes when interacting digitally with a diverse team. Respondents ranged in age from 18 to 76 years old and were 49 percent female, 50 percent male, and 1 percent nonbinary. Here are some of its findings:

* Average amount of time Americans spend per week on video calls: 5.5 hours.

* Percent of survey respondents who say they exert energy to maintain good posture during video calls: 71.

* Percent who say video calls are more fatiguing than in-person meetings: 49.

* Percent who say they find the form of collaboration to be unnatural: 39 (“You don’t have to press the unmute button in real life to share your thoughts; difficulty in reading nonverbal communication, which can lead to misunderstandings.”)

* Percent who admit to having experienced anxiety during a work video call: 94.

* Percent who say they’ve felt anxiety from seeing their self-image as well: 46.

* Percent who say they have tried to speak on a work video call, realized they were on mute, and abandoned what they were going to say: 55.

* Percent who say they’ve tried to speak on a work video call, been interrupted by a coworker starting to speak, and abandoned what they were going to say: 75.

Workplace ageism

In March, ResumeBuilder.com surveyed 1,000 hiring managers to understand the prevalence of ageism in the workplace in 2024. Survey participants were over the age of 25, had a salary of over $50,000 and worked for a company with more than 11 employees. Key findings include:

* Percent of hiring managers who consider age when reviewing resumes: 42

* Percent of hiring managers who admit to age bias against Gen Zers (ages 18 to 27): 36. * Of this group, percent who expressed concerns about Gen Z’s lack of experience: 77.

* About their unprofessional attitude: 58.

* About their tendency to job hop: 63.

* About Gen Z’s reliability: 50

* About their work ethic: 46

* Percent of hiring managers who expressed concerns about hiring candidates over the age of 60: 34.

* Of hiring managers with this view, percent who raise concerns about seniors’ likelihood of retirement: 74.

* Who worry about their potential health issues: 64.

* Who worry about seniors’ lack of experience with technology: 48

* Who say they work too slowly: 40.

* Who worry about seniors’ fixed mindset: 39.

* Who worry about seniors’ need for more time off: 30.

* Percent of hiring managers who believe that LinkedIn contributes to age bias in the hiring process: 46. (In comparison, 35 percent believe Indeed contributes to age bias, and 30 percent say that of Glassdoor.)

* Percent of hiring managers who say if a candidate has an elderly appearance, they are deterred from considering them: 41.

* Percent of hiring managers who recommend candidates over 60 make an effort to appear younger in interviews: 36.

*  Percent who say a youthful appearance turns them off from considering an applicant: 19.

* Percent who recommend that 18 to 27 year-old candidates try to appear older during interviews: 36.

The post Figuratively Speaking: Easter Ecommerce; Remote Workers; Workplace Ageism appeared first on The Network Journal.