KSNF/KODE — Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce (an American cloud-based software company), recently made waves when he told employees that the company’s newest hires aren’t being productive enough, and he wanted help figuring out why. The tech giant’s employee productivity issue is not an isolated one.

Employers are not only battling inflation and slowing growth but worker productivity that is falling at the fastest rate in four decades. This has been the first year since 1983 to include three straight quarters of year-over-year drops in average productivity per worker, according to ADP Chief Economist, Nela Richardson.

Simply put: People are working more and producing less.

| Stamps To Increase In Price >

Much of the disconnect can be traced back to a few things, including pre-pandemic events. People are tired and stressed, leading to more burnout. Without the separation of work and home forced by the pandemic, people worked more.

The skyrocketing cost of living is also taking a toll on workers. Recent data from human capital management software firm Ceridian shows that 61% of North American workers are more stressed about their finances than they were a year ago—the highest level of financial stress since 2008. The firm calculates that such widespread financial worry is leading to $664 billion in lost productivity for employers each year across North America.