The World Cup fever has swept across the United States, and many employees have taken advantage of the situation to request sick leaves and be absent from work.
According to Bloomberg's report on July 17, data analysis from the office security management platform Envoy shows that on July 7 local time, the day after the United States lost to Belgium, the attendance rate at offices across the U.S plummeted by 26%, which is about ten times the decline observed the day after the Super Bowl game.
Data also shows that the number of employees present during the match dropped, with the average attendance rate on Mondays decreasing by 8.5% compared to the past three months. The attractiveness of these matches—France against Morocco and Spain against Belgium—to American employees diminished this week, leading to a gradual increase in the number of employees present.
This survey further exacerbates concerns among various parties: this global top-tier sports event is slowing down labor productivity.
According to HR software service provider UKG, this World Cup could cause a productivity loss of $11.7 billion for the United States, with global economic losses reaching $17 billion. The agency's research found that more than a quarter of American employees are late, leave early, or simply stay at home to watch the World Cup games.
Envoy data analyst Xide Nie Leblang said: "We have monitored a large number of employees taking leave and absenteeism." She added that, although multiple sporting events were broadcast during the American workdays, employees often stayed up to celebrate or mourn defeat, leading to a significant drop in daily attendance.
Some companies have taken preemptive measures to mitigate the impact of the World Cup on their daily work schedules. Companies in the host cities of the events, such as JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, and Standard & Poor’s, encourage employees to work remotely from home on the day of the event, thereby avoiding traffic congestion and commuting delays caused by the event.
