Stressed in work today? Then say a prayer because workers who are religious tend to be happier than their colleagues who do not believe in God, a new study suggests.
According to research from Roxane Gervais, unveiled at a British Psychological Society conference last week, the more religious a person is, the less likely they are to suffer from stress and depression.
Dr Gervais claims employees with strong beliefs, particularly those who regularly attend church, are more likely to feel their life has meaning – even if they work, for example, in accounts.
But, regardless of religious beliefs or none, the time may have come to show a little faith again in the local economy.
Richard Ramsey, Ulster Bank's chief economist in Northern Ireland, has been preaching for a couple of months now about signs of recovery and, in particular, the resurrection of the retail and service sectors in the North.
While he does not expect the local economy to bounce back Lazarus-style from the crippling effects of the recession, Ramsey is optimistically predicting it will grow at least 1.5 per cent this year.
He has highlighted a “solid expansion” in private-sector employment numbers at the close of last year as proof that the economy is in “a lot better shape” than it was.
“Last month, local firms saw their staffing levels increase at their fastest rate since the beginning of the credit crunch in August 2007. All sectors of the economy increased staffing levels in December,” Ramsey said.
Jobs boost
He attributes the jobs boost to a recruitment drive led by the retail industry and the wider services sector. But there is also evidence that suggests not all retailers are benefiting from the nascent recovery and, in fact, some may be barely holding on.
A new survey published today by the organisation which represents high-street retailers and supermarkets shows there was a slump in shopper numbers during December.
Aodhán Connolly, director of the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium (NIRC), said the survey recorded one of the worst declines in shopper numbers across the UK – down 8.7 per cent on the previous year.
Connolly said the latest figures were “deeply concerning” and illustrated that disposable incomes were “under the greatest pressure” in the North. He said the sector accounted for one in every 10 jobs in Northern Ireland.
But local retail vacancy rates are double the national UK average with one in five shops lying empty.
According to Connolly, retailers and consumers desperately need a confidence boost. “In the coming weeks, we will be calling on the Northern Ireland Executive to step up to the challenge of ensuring not just the survival, but the growth of the retail sector.”
But it might be difficult for political leaders to persuade people to go out and spend money while they appear unable to reach an agreement that could deliver a significant boost for the economy in 2014.
Richard Haass
Just over a month ago, business leaders urged politicians to "grasp the opportunity" that talks, chaired by a former US diplomat Richard Haass, could generate for Northern Ireland. All the key business bodies – including CBI Northern Ireland, the Centre for Competitiveness, the Federation of Small Businesses, the Institute of Directors, and the Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce – said a successful outcome to the talks would "provide a significant boost to confidence and stability".
“It will also create the conditions where we can collectively focus on how we can create better-paid jobs, and more of them,” they urged.
Nobody appears to have listened. Perhaps it is past time for the North’s political leaders to take their own leap of faith when it comes to the local economy.
