Are Occupational Stress and Burnout the Key Influences on Employee Well-Being in the Western Society Today?

In these difficult times it’s not uncommon for someone to work at a second job or juggle multiple jobs to make ends meet. These days, even those of us with just one job to deal with work twice as hard in our current positions to avoid the fatal pink slip. Unless you have an emotional suit of armor, you may end up burning out. The consequences may be extremely serious for yourself and for your performance Stress, particularly work-related stress, has aroused growing interest across Europe in recent years. The workplace has changed dramatically due to globalization of the economy, use of new information and communications, technology. Work-related stress is a pattern of reactions that occurs when workers are presented with work demands that are not matched to their knowledge, skills or abilities, and which challenge their ability to cope. Stress at work is the harmful physical and emotional response that occurs when there is a poor match between job demands and the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker. Job burnout is happening more and more every day. You are expected to do more, in less time, often with fewer resources. At the same time you are meant to have some work life balance. This may lead to you feel constantly tired and irritated by work. The causes of burnout and wide and varied, but often they come back to stress and time management. We regularly see that a feeling of not having enough time is an early sign of the stress that can lead to burnout. Some people get angry, some become quiet and introverted, while others overeat or abuse drugs and alcohol. Stress occurs in many different circumstances, but is particularly strong when a person’s ability to control the demands of work is threatened. Insecurity about successful performance and fear of negative consequences resulting from performance failure may evoke powerful negative emotions of anxiety, anger and irritation. The stressful experience is intensified

References: http://www.eurofound.europa.eu (Work-related stress) http://agency.osha.eu.int http://www.wisegeek.com