How important are social events at work?

Canadian employers who skimp on workplace social events risk losing out on measurable gains in morale and retention, according to a report.

Currently, just half (50 per cent) of workers in Canada say their employer organizes lighthearted social events at least quarterly. One in five (21 per cent) said such events happen only once or twice a year.

Team lunches or meals are the most common social activity, cited by 29 per cent of respondents, followed by holiday or seasonal events at 22 per cent.

But do these kinds of events make a difference? Yes, according to respondents of the survey by ADP Canada. Benefits include:

• Strengthened relationships with colleagues (48 per cent)
• A greater sense of belonging (40 per cent)
• Improved teamwork and collaboration (38 per cent)
• Boosted morale (37 per cent)

"Creating opportunities for employees to connect in meaningful ways can have a lasting impact on the workplace," said Heather Haslam, vice-president of marketing at ADP Canada, which did the survey.

Social events also open opportunities for workers to build friendships with their colleagues. And 85 per cent of companies believe employees are more likely to stay with a company if they have friends in the workplace, with more than one-third (35%) strongly agreeing, according to a previous report.

Overall happiness score dips

Employers may need to turn to social events at work even more, as Canadian workers’ happiness scores have dropped, according to the ADP Happiness@Work Index, based on a survey of 1,822 workers. The score for July was 6.8 out of 10, down 0.1 points from June and unchanged from July of the previous year, ADP Canada reported.

Work-life balance and flexibility remained the top contributor to overall satisfaction, scoring 7.0, unchanged from June. Recognition and support fell to 6.7, and compensation and benefits dropped to 6.3.

Boomers were the happiest generation at 7.4, up 0.2 points, while Gen Z ranked lowest at 6.7, down 0.2 points. Alberta remained the lowest-scoring region at 6.5.

One in seven employees now turn to AI for work advice before asking a manager or colleague, according to a previous report.