SEC Morale Bad and Getting Worse

SEC morale is color coded yellow -- bad mood alert.

Biannually (once every two years), the federal government conducts a survey of federal employees with respect to job satisfaction and working conditions.  I always look for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) results, because the SEC is the government agency charged with regulating accounting (establishing accounting standards) and auditing (PCAOB).

The results of the 2010 survey are out (here).  The image at right says it all.  Warning:  morale at the SEC is bad and getting worse.

Does it matter to us?  I think so.  The SEC is in charge of protecting investors.  It’s employee morale is a clear gauge as to how the war is going.

When Mary Schapiro was appointed chair by new president Obama, morale at the SEC was at an all-time low.  The worst chairman in SEC history, Christopher Cox, had done a number on the agency’s effectiveness against big business.  Jobs were not being performed efficiently or well.  A ‘circle the wagons’ mentality had set in.

After two years of Schapiro’s leadership, we can now see that morale is getting worse.  Employee job satisfaction is 35th out of 37 federal agencies.  Of 46 individual rating items, there were 5% declines in 25 items for SEC employees.  SEC employee responses were significantly below federal average for 39 of the 46 items.

When “circle the wagons” fails to provide protection, employees can only play dead and pray not to get scalped.

Thanks to Broc Romanek for the tip.

Debit and credit – - David Albrecht