Work-related stress and burnout

Burnout

According to popular belief, burnout (exhaustion, cynicism, lack of efficiency) is mainly a personal problem, i.e. the burnout is caused by shortcomings in the person’s character, behaviour or productivity. In reality, it is a problem of the social environment.

The structure and operation of the workplace shape the way people communicate and work. If the working environment does not recognise the human aspects of the work, the risk of burnout increases. The burnout of an individual says more about the working conditions rather than the person themselves.

Energy, feeling connected to the work and team, efficiency – these are the opposites of burnout. People usually start a new job with great enthusiasm. Most often, burnout affects the competent and talented. 

Possible causes of burnout:

• Overload. Business owners’ desire to get rich quick, expenditure reduction and other such changes require additional time and energy from employees – work is more intensive and complex which, in turn, leads to exhaustion.
• Lack of control. Rules that prevent the application of professional skills decrease the independence and participation of employees. If a person has no control over the important aspects of their work, they cannot solve the problems encountered. People lose interest if they are not involved in decision making.
• Insufficient remuneration. People hope that work will bring about rewards in the form of money, prestige, career opportunities and sense of safety. Internal rewards are also important for them – to do the work they love in the company of honourable colleagues. The joy of working disappears if the remuneration is insufficient, additional benefits are reduced and there are no career perspectives.
• Community breakdown. One consequence of the above is the breakdown of community at work. The loss of employment security and keen focus on short-term profit shatters the sense of unity. This damages both personal relationships and teamwork.
• Lack of justice. People feel a sense of justice at work when there is trust (e.g. common projects), openness and respect. An organisation in crisis is not interested in the well-being of its employees. Competitive pressures and short-term management values encourage secrecy. A strict focus on results encourages manipulation.
• Conflicting values. Lack of vision and the pursuit of momentary profit only contradicts the values of the most dedicated employees. 

Further reading

Free from work-related stress! (Labour Inspectorate guidance material)

Psychosocial hazards at work (Guidance document of the Senior Labour Inspectors’ Committee)

Third-party violence (ROTAL brochure)

Handbook: Addressing violence and harassment against women in the world of work (ILO and UN Women, in English)

Analysis of mental health in the working environment (Analysis by the Ministry of Social Affairs)

Work-related stress

Work-related stress is a sense of pressure that arises when there is a conflict between work challenges and the person’s ability to cope with them.

A small amount of work-related stress can be motivating and have a positive effect; however, the situation is serious when stress gets to be too intense or lasts for a long time and there are not enough resources to cope with it. In a new or stressful situation and under heavy workloads, the body goes through an adaptation reaction, also known as stress reaction. It is a neurochemical process which, among other things, causes increased heart rate, rapid breathing and sharper senses. All these reactions are important in a situation where we only have two options – fight or flight. This kind of fight-or-flight response was useful in the past; however, in the case of long-term stress in a modern working environment it is no longer justified – as a result, the body becomes exhausted and mental and physical health problems arise. For instance, cardiovascular diseases, metabolic disorders, musculoskeletal diseases, anxiety disorders, depression and malignant tumours are associated with work-related stress.

If for many other working environment hazards, it is possible to set limits for the protection of employees and provide clear guidelines for risk management, then in the case of work-related stress, the situation is more complex: the occurrence of stress and related damage depends on many factors. A situation that causes uncomfortable stress for one person, may have an incentivising effect on the other. Alternatively, a task that normally causes no difficulties, may one day seem impossible to complete, for example, due to personal problems; relationships between colleagues also affect well-being and work performance.

The employee’s vulnerability to work-related stress and its harmful effects depends, for example, on:

• the importance of coping with the work situation;
• previous experience and position at work;
• personality, gender and age;
• skills and knowledge;
• state of health;
• non-work responsibilities;
• existing social support and many other factors.

Further reading

• Psychosocial hazards at work (Guidance document of the Senior Labour Inspectors’ Committee)
• Third party violence (ROTAL brochure)
• Handbook: Addressing violence and harassment against women in the world of work (ILO and UN Women, in English)
• Analysis of mental health in the working environment (Analysis by the Ministry of Social Affairs)
• Practical advice for workers on tackling work-related stress and its causes (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work fact sheet)
• Interview tool for assessment of work-related stress (Senior Labour Inspectors’ Committee guidance material)
• Questionnaire for assessment of work-related stress (Senior Labour Inspectors’ Committee guidance material)

Compassion fatigue

Compassion fatigue is a problem that primarily affects employees whose job requires understanding, assisting and advising other people (e.g. doctors, nurses, social workers, caregivers, counsellors). Constant exposure to people’s suffering and inability to help may cause feelings of guilt and the need to protect oneself from the problems of those assisted. Compassion fatigue is often accompanied by occupational burnout and the sufferer may not even understand the nature of the problem. The symptoms include: a change in thinking, a sense of numbness, depersonalisation, inability to feel empathy. The condition worsens and starts interfering with work and personal life (Inge Tael 2013).

Compassion fatigue can be prevented and alleviated by promoting employee relationships (support from co-workers, possibility to discuss problems with each other), allowing employees to keep personal items in workrooms (e.g. family photos, favourite artworks, certificates), providing sessions with an occupational psychologist or supervisor to employees and opportunities to rest and express their frustrations in a healthy way (e.g. access to gyms, joint open-air and other events, appropriately furnished rest areas), ensuring proper work and rest time, etc. If the problem already exists, it is essential for the employee to seek help from a specialist because compassion fatigue does not only affect the victim but also their work quality through changes in their thinking and feelings.

Sources:

• http://ingetael.weebly.com/1/post/2013/07/mis-on-kriis-ja-pshholoogiline-trauma.html
• http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/somatic-psychology/201207/compassion-fatigue
• http://www.compassionfatigue.org/index.html

Compiler: Liina Saar

Overload

Business owners’ desire to get rich quick, expenditure reduction and other such changes require additional time and energy from employees – work is more intensive and complex which, in turn, leads to exhaustion.

Lack of control

Rules that prevent the application of professional skills decrease the independence and participation of employees. If a person has no control over the important aspects of their work, they cannot solve the problems encountered. People lose interest if they are not involved in decision making.

Insufficient remuneration

People hope that work will bring about rewards in the form of money, prestige, career opportunities and sense of safety. Internal rewards are also important for them – to do the work they love in the company of honourable colleagues. The joy of working disappears if the remuneration is insufficient, additional benefits are reduced and there are no career perspectives.

Community breakdown

One consequence of the above is the breakdown of community at work. The loss of employment security and keen focus on short-term profit shatters the sense of unity. This damages both personal relationships and teamwork.

Lack of justice

People feel a sense of justice at work when there is trust (e.g. common projects), openness and respect. An organisation in crisis is not interested in the well-being of its employees. Competitive pressures and short-term management values encourage secrecy. A strict focus on results encourages manipulation.

Conflicting values

Lack of vision and the pursuit of momentary profit only contradicts the values of the most dedicated employees.