Research Studies

"Increasing the Visibility of the Invisible Workforce"

Leon C. Litchfield, Ph.D.; Jennifer E. Swanberg, Ph.D.; Catherine M. Sigworth, B.S.
Boston College Center for Work & Family Carroll School of Management, May 2004.

Available Online

According to this study by the Boston College Center for Work & Family’s Carroll School of Management, programs that address the well being and development of hourly and low-wage workers have a positive impact on the bottom line. The report looks at the best practices of 15 organizations, including Eddie Bauer, Levi Strauss & Co., Providian Financial and the TJX Companies, Inc. Findings are provided for programs dealing with a wide variety of issues, including dependent care, employee development, financial assistance, incentives, and flexible scheduling.

The study separates the programs in question into three categories:

• Those that have been specifically developed for and restricted to lower wage employees.
• Those that are available to all employees, but are mainly utilized by lower wage employees.
• Those that are utilized by employees of all income levels, but are included because they are generally not available to hourly and lower wage employees in other companies.

Among the key findings:

• Employees earning less than $15,000 annually are estimated to make up one-third (32 percent) of American workers today.
• Lower wage occupations account for 16 of the 30 fastest growing occupations.
• Companies tend to lack information regarding how their hourly and lower wage employees feel about their organizations.
• Many of the programs and policies that benefit hourly and/or low-wage workers are inexpensive and/or provide cost savings.
• Lower wage employees tend to be very enthusiastic about the programs made available to them.
• Most of the companies surveyed cited attracting talent as a key reason for starting programs that benefited low-wage or hourly workers.
• Nearly half of the organizations mentioned retention issues as one of the primary benefits of the program or policy, and felt that the employees who had participated were much more loyal to the company as a result of their participation.