Survey Says: Americans Are Literally in Love with Their Smartphones

Smartphones, it seems, are the new significant other. And while work-related stress is taking an increasing toll on employees' well-being, a growing number of employers are thinking about dropping their health insurance. Here's a closer look at some of the latest small-business surveys.

Take my BlackBerry, Please

In our 24-7 connected world, work life can definitely creep into personal life, but Americans may becoming a little too attached to their smartphones. The 5th Annual National Staples Small Business Survey found that 60 percent of small-business owners spend more time holding their mobile devices than they do hold their significant other's hand. (Guilty as charged.) On the plus side, 40 percent of significant others said they don't mind because they understand the business owner's need to work more.

When asked whether it would be tougher to go a week without their significant other or a day without their mobile devices, 63 percent of entrepreneurs said they would miss their partners more than their phones, while 37 percent chose the phones. I plead the Fifth on this one.

Stressed Case

Employees' stress levels are skyrocketing. In a new survey by CareerBuilder, 51 percent of workers say their workloads have increased over the last six months; 27 percent haven't taken a personal or sick day in the past few years; and 26 percent have experienced health issues tied to job stress.

With 52 percent of workers putting in more than 40 hours per week, nearly one-fourth of employees say they're always thinking about work, even at home or on social occasions; 19 percent frequently dream (or have nightmares?) about work.

To Their Health

Increased stress invariably becomes a health-care concern. And that leads to a worry about how reform of the system will affect business owners. Are entrepreneurs going to give up their insurance programs as a result of the new laws? Some are: 22 percent of employers say they will consider dropping insurance for their employees altogether, according to a survey conducted by the Midwest Business Group on Health and co-sponsored by the National Business Coalition on Health, Business Insurance and Workforce Management.

However, that number is far outweighed by the 53 percent of all employers who have no plans to drop health benefits. One-third of employers plan to cover all costs of extending coverage to employees' adult children up to age 26, while one-third will share the costs with their employees. And nearly 60 percent of employers plan to expand workplace wellness programs, thanks to the increased incentives for doing so.

Rieva Lesonsky is CEO of GrowBiz Media, a content and consulting company that helps entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses. Follow Rieva at Twitter.com/Rieva and visit SmallBizDaily.com to sign up for her free TrendCast reports.