Office slackers: the truth about doing nothing at work

Regular listeners might be forgiven for thinking employees are mostly overwhelmed and overworked. But is the world actually full of people looking artfully busy? Employees who may be slipping under the radar in big organisations? Host Isabel Berwick speaks to David Bolchover, author of ‘The Living Dead: Switched Off, Zoned Out – The Shocking Truth About Office Life’, who spent several years employed at a large organisation doing nothing. And she hears from Leo Lewis, the FT’s Asia business editor based in Tokyo, about a backlash in Japan against the phenomenon of the hatarakanai ojisan, the old geezer (or, less commonly, his female equivalent) who manages to get away with doing no work. Want more?The rise and rise of Japan’s unsackable slacker https://www.ft.com/content/4012c8f4-cb16-4bf5-ac25-a88c1aae8a51The threat of boredom at work https://www.ft.com/content/bccf5464-0996-11e7-97d1-5e720a26771bFT subscriber? Sign up for the weekly Working It newsletter with one click, here. We cover all things workplace and management — plus exclusive reporting on trends, tips and what’s coming next. We love to hear from you. What do you like (or not)? What topics should we tackle? Email the team at [email protected] or Isabel directly at [email protected]. Follow @isabelberwick on Twitter Subscribe to Working It wherever you get your podcasts — and do leave us a review!Presented by Isabel Berwick. Editorial direction from Manuela Saragosa. Produced by Novel.Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What this episode covers

Regular listeners might be forgiven for thinking employees are mostly overwhelmed and overworked. But is the world actually full of people looking artfully busy? Employees who may be slipping under the radar in big organisations? Host Isabel Berwick speaks to David Bolchover, author of ‘The Living Dead: Switched Off, Zoned Out – The Shocking Truth About Office Life’, who spent several years employed at a large organisation doing nothing. And she hears from Leo Lewis, the FT’s Asia business editor based in Tokyo, about a backlash in Japan against the phenomenon of the hatarakanai ojisan, the old geezer (or, less commonly, his female equivalent) who manages to get away with doing no work. Want more?The rise and rise of Japan’s unsackable slacker https://www.ft.com/content/4012c8f4-cb16-4bf5-ac25-a88c1aae8a51The threat of boredom at work https://www.ft.com/content/bccf5464-0996-11e7-97d1-5e720a26771bFT subscriber? Sign up for the weekly Working It newsletter with one click, here. We cover all things workplace and management — plus exclusive reporting on trends, tips and what’s coming next. We love to hear from you. What do you like (or not)? What topics should we tackle? Email the team at [email protected] or Isabel directly at [email protected]. Follow @isabelberwick on Twitter Subscribe to Working It wherever you get your podcasts — and do leave us a review!Presented by Isabel Berwick. Editorial direction from Manuela Saragosa. Produced by Novel.Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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