Official Duties and the "Real Job": How meaningful work enhances engagement

By Janelle Callahan, Principal Consultant, Institute for Public Sector Employee Engagement, CPS HR Consulting

The latest StoryCorps book by Dave Isay, Callings: The Purpose and Passion of Work, features several stories from public servants. One story is from New York City department of sanitation workers Angelo Bruno and Eddie Nieves, who were partners on a garbage truck route in Manhattan for many years. Angelo Bruno described how an older co-worker showed him early on what his job means:

One day, he stopped the truck. He tells me, ‘Angelo, you look down this block first. See all the sidewalks are all crowded up with garbage?’ So I think nothing of it. My father always told me to respect my elders. I get to the end of the block, and he stops me again. ‘Get out of the truck, look back. Nice and clean right? People could walk on the sidewalk. Guys can make deliveries. Be proud of yourself.’

Sometimes we can find purpose in our jobs for ourselves, and other times, it takes insight from another person to help reveal its true meaning. By asking Angelo to look at the street before and after they collected the garbage, and by pointing out the positive result of their work, his co-worker shared an important perspective on the job. Each day, they provide a great service to the city’s residents, so they should feel good about the work they do.

Numerous studies on employee engagement also support this idea that meaningfulness and pride in one’s job is critical to engagement. Another common quality of employees who find deep fulfillment in their jobs is that they have an expansive view of who and how they serve. In the book, Why We Work, psychologist Barry Schwartz argues that almost any job can be personally rewarding, even jobs that some may consider less desirable. He cites the example of a hospital custodian who described his “official duties” (e.g., cleaning floors and toilets, changing bed linens), and his “real job,” which is to make patients and their families feel more comfortable in any way he can (e.g., saying hello, or listening when someone just needs to talk).

Amy Wrzesniewski and her colleagues, the researchers who interviewed the hospital custodian, coined the term job crafting to describe what he and others have done to find personal meaning in their jobs. Job crafting is “what employees do to redesign their own jobs in ways that can foster job satisfaction, as well as engagement, resilience, and thriving at work.”

Angelo Bruno and Eddie Nieves also viewed roles for themselves beyond collecting garbage. Like the hospital custodian, they were willing to lend a helping hand whenever they could. Angelo Bruno explained: “I could do 14 tons of garbage, I can’t lift a baby carriage off a step and carry it down? Or hold someone’s baby when they went to get their car?” Public servants like Angelo and Eddie or the hospital custodian made it part of their job to be on the lookout for ways to help. It added meaning to their jobs, and in turn, they became positive reflections on their organizations to the people they helped.

How can you foster meaningfulness and pride as a leader or supervisor? Consider reflecting on this idea of “official duties” and the “real job.” If you’re a leader or a supervisor, demonstrate passion for the real job to show employees what it means. Or take a lesson from the ‘old-timer’ who showed Angelo Bruno what his job really meant. Identify a before-and-after situation for the employee to behold themselves, and then explain the consequence of their job well-done.