Super Bowl 50 Fever May Sideline 16.5 Million U.S. Employees on Monday

CHELMSFORD, Mass.--()--A new survey commissioned in January by The Workforce Institute at Kronos Incorporated and conducted by Harris Poll1 suggests that an estimated 16.5 million2 employed U.S. adults may miss work the day after Super Bowl 50 due to the game, with nearly 10.5 million3 Americans having already requested or plan to request the day off in advance.

The “Super Bowl 50 Fever Sidelines Employees” survey was conducted online from Jan. 27-29, 2016 among 2,042 U.S. adults ages 18 and older. All percentages set forth below are based directly from the survey results, while estimates set forth below for the number of people who may not go to work or may show up to work late on Monday because of the Super Bowl have been extrapolated from the correlation between the survey results and the fact that there are 149.9 million employed people in America (per U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics January 2016 report).

One in 10 U.S. workers may not go to work on Monday because of the Super Bowl.

  • A whopping 16.5 million Americans say they might not go to work on Super Bowl Monday because of the game airing Sunday night. In fact, 10.5 million Americans have already requested or plan to request the entire day off in advance, with the rest considering calling in sick Monday morning.
  • Another estimated 7.5 million4 Americans say they may show up late to work Super Bowl Monday.
  • Super Bowl-related absences could be particularly striking for organizations with a high population of Millennial and Gen Z employees, as 20 percent of employees ages 18-34 say they may not go to work on Monday because of game.
  • Of those who plan to watch Super Bowl 50, 32 percent of men ages 18-34 and 20 percent of men ages 35-44 claim they might not go to work the following day due to the game.
    • Men are not the only ones at risk to catch Super Bowl Fever: 10 percent of employed women who plan to watch the big game say they might not go to work on Monday.
  • According to the study, 77 percent of American workers plan to watch Super Bowl 50.

Symptoms of Super Bowl Fever include fatigue, headache, nausea, and rabid fandom.

  • Fifteen percent of employed U.S. adults who have ever watched the Super Bowl claim the game caused them to show up late or not go to work the following day at least once in their lives.
  • When asked to identify specific Super Bowl-related reasons that contributed to missing work or showing up late the following day, several trends emerged among those who have ever called in sick, taken a pre-approved day off, showed up late unannounced, or arranged to arrive late to work the day after the Super Bowl:
  • Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos fans could be most likely to request the day off in advance, as 43 percent of those who took off Super Bowl Monday as a planned absence in the past say they did so because their favorite team was playing in the game.
  • Those who plan on attending a Super Bowl party are also likely to request Monday off in advance, as 43 percent cite this as a main reason for taking a pre-approved day off.
  • Simply being tired from staying up late watching the game was the top reason for both calling in sick (40 percent) and showing up late (41 percent) on Monday unannounced.
  • Drinking too much alcohol was also a key factor in unplanned absences, as 34 percent of people 21 and older admit to calling in sick on the Monday after the Super Bowl in years past because they were hungover, while 28 percent say a hangover caused them to be late.

Employed adults who plan to watch the game with friends, away from home are most at risk to catch Super Bowl Fever.

  • According to employed adults, 23 percent say they will watch Super Bowl 50 somewhere other than their home (e.g., at a friend’s house, at a restaurant or bar), and 33 percent plan to watch with a group of people. Eleven percent plan to host a Super Bowl party at their home this year.
  • One-fifth (21 percent) of those who are employed and plan to watch the game with a group of people say they may not go to work the next day, with 16 percent claiming they have already requested or plan to request the day off.
  • Similarly, 24 percent of employed Americans who plan to watch the game somewhere other than their home say they may skip work on Monday, with 17 percent claiming they already requested or plan to request the day off.

Your boss isn’t immune to Super Bowl Fever, either.

  • Of those who plan to watch Super Bowl 50 that identify as a manager or boss with the authority to approve employee time-off requests, 29 percent say they may miss work on Monday, too.
    • Eighteen percent of these people managers have already requested or plan to request the day off in advance due to the game, while 12 percent may simply call in sick.
  • Even if your boss may not miss work after the big game this year, there is a chance he or she has in the past: 35 percent of today’s people managers who have ever watched the big game have missed work or shown up late to work on Super Bowl Monday at least once in their lifetime.

According to U.S. workers, the Super Bowl is not the only event worth calling in sick for – and it’s not worth lying about.

  • Major sporting events such as the Super Bowl aren’t the only events that cause Americans to call in sick or come in late to work the following day – however they are the most likely:
    • Fourteen percent of employed Americans say that they have missed work or shown up late to work the following day because of a sporting event, followed by nine percent who have done the same for a celebration parade; eight percent admit an awards show such as the Oscars or Grammys caused them to miss or show up late to work; and seven percent say a political debate or rally contributed to missing work or showing up late the next day.
  • If a personal, non-essential activity such as watching the Super Bowl or attending a concert, sporting event, or party caused someone to miss work or come in late the following day, 74 percent of full-time/part-time employed Americans claim that they would tell their boss the truth about why they missed or showed up late to work unexpectedly.

Supporting Quotes

  • Joyce Maroney, director, The Workforce Institute at Kronos

“According to the Super Bowl 50 Fever survey, 77 percent of American workers plan to watch the game Sunday night – which may keep a staggering 16.5 million employees out of work on Monday. This annual day of mass absenteeism often spurs the tongue-in-cheek debate about making Super Bowl Monday a national holiday. Until that day comes, organizations must have a clear cut, consistent attendance policy with solutions that enable employee self-service and shift swapping capabilities. They should also encourage managers to build a relationship of trust and transparency with employees to help minimize unplanned absences, which cost organizations billions of dollars each year. One of the most promising pieces in this year’s study is that the majority of those who plan to take Super Bowl Monday off are doing so in advance.”

Supporting Resources

  • Note to editors: Cite survey as The Workforce Institute at Kronos “Super Bowl 50 Fever Sidelines Employees” survey.
  • Note to editors: The Super Bowl 50 Fever survey should not be compared with previous The Workforce Institute at Kronos surveys on the topic because the 2016 data pool included part-time and self-employed adults 18 and older, and because the survey offered an additional option for respondents to indicate if they had already requested/planned to request Monday off.
  • See the December 2014 study, “Total Financial Impact of Employee Absences,” commissioned by Kronos and conducted in collaboration with the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) about the impact employee absences have on organizations and their workforces around the world.
  • Read It’s All About Bob(bie) – Strategies for Winning with Your Employees, the third book in the workforce management anthology from The Workforce Institute at Kronos.
  • Follow The Workforce Institute at Kronos on Twitter.
  • Connect with Kronos via Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
  • Subscribe to the Kronos workforce management blogs.
  • Take a look at the lighter side of workforce management in our Time Well Spent cartoons.

Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Poll on behalf of Kronos Incorporated from Jan. 27-29, 2016 among 2,042 adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact domenic.locapo@kronos.com.

About The Workforce Institute at Kronos
The Workforce Institute provides research and education on critical workplace issues facing organizations around the globe. By bringing together thought leaders, The Workforce Institute is uniquely positioned to empower organizations with the knowledge and information they need to manage their workforce effectively and provide a voice for employees on important workplace issues. A hallmark of The Workforce Institute’s research is balancing the needs and desires of diverse employee populations with the needs of organizations. For additional information, visit www.workforceinstitute.org.

About Kronos Incorporated
Kronos is the global leader in delivering workforce management solutions in the cloud. Tens of thousands of organizations in more than 100 countries — including more than half of the Fortune 1000® — use Kronos to control labor costs, minimize compliance risk, and improve workforce productivity. Learn more about Kronos industry-specific time and attendance, scheduling, absence management, HR and payroll, hiring, and labor analytics applications at www.kronos.com. Kronos: Workforce Innovation That Works.

About The Harris Poll
Over the last five decades, Harris Polls have become media staples. With comprehensive experience and precise technique in public opinion polling, along with a proven track record of uncovering consumers’ motivations and behaviors, The Harris Poll has gained strong brand recognition around the world. The Harris Poll offers a diverse portfolio of proprietary client solutions to transform relevant insights into actionable foresight for a wide range of industries including health care, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer packaged goods. Contact us for more information.

© 2016 Kronos Incorporated. All rights reserved. Kronos and the Kronos logo are registered trademarks and Workforce Innovation That Works is a trademark of Kronos Incorporated or a related company. See a complete list of Kronos trademarks. All other trademarks, if any, are property of their respective owners.

Footnote 1: This survey was conducted online by Harris Poll in January 2016 among 2,042 U.S. adults ages 18 and older, of whom 1,068 are employed either full-time or part-time. Throughout this press release, “employees” and/or “Americans” will be used to represent full-time/part-time/self-employed workers weighted to the online U.S. population.

Footnote 2: Calculation based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report from January 2016 that estimates there are 149.9 million employed people in the U.S.: 149.9M * .11= 16.5M may not go into work the day after Super Bowl 50 due to the game.

Footnote 3: Calculation based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report from January 2016 that estimates there are 149.9 million employed people in the U.S.: 149.9M * .07= 10.5M who already requested/plan to request the Monday after Super Bowl 50 off due to the game.

Footnote 4: Calculation based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report from January 2016 that estimates there are 149.9 million employed people in the U.S.: 149.9M * .05 = 7.5M who may show up late to work the Monday after Super Bowl 50 due to the game.

Contacts

Kronos Incorporated
Domenic Locapo, +1 978-947-4777
domenic.locapo@kronos.com

Release Summary

Super Bowl Fever may sideline 16.5 million American workers Monday per new Harris Poll research from The Workforce Institute at Kronos. In fact,10.5 million workers plan to request the entire day off.

Contacts

Kronos Incorporated
Domenic Locapo, +1 978-947-4777
domenic.locapo@kronos.com