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Principles of Health: Anxiety and Stress

Occupational Stress

by Tamara Dunn

Occupational stress is the collection of physical, biological, psychological, and chemical stressors that originate from the workplace. With technological advances making employees work beyond the office and the nine-to-five hours of the past, more laborers say their jobs are extremely stressful. Occupational stress is felt in developed and underdeveloped countries in various degrees and is linked to chronic physical and mental health problems.

Background

While more workers in the US report being over-worked in their occupations, their work hours are far less than what they were two generations ago. According to research by the University of California, Davis and the University of Groningen, US workers averaged 1,765 work hours per year in 2014 versus in 1950, 1,984 work hours per year. Statistics show a gradual decline in work hours in a seven-decade span, peaking at 2,024 hours in 1951 and hitting its lowest point at 1,729 hours in 2009.

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 2015 ranked the US sixteenth out of 36 nations in terms of average workweek hours with 34.4 hours. Mexico ranked first with an average of 42.85 work hours per week. Compared to other first world countries, the US outranked neighboring Canada (twenty-second with 32.77 hours), the UK (twenty-fourth with 32.25 hours), France (thirty-second with 28.33 hours), and bottom-ranked Germany (thirty-sixth with 26.37 hours). OECD statistics show that workers in developing countries, in addition to Mexico, log in the most work hours. Costa Rica and Korea average more than 40 hours per week.

However, full-time US workers disagree with these statistics. In a 2014 Gallup poll, workers said they performed an average of 47 hours per week, the equivalent of a six-day workweek in five days. The poll also showed that nearly 40% of respondents reported working at least 50 hours per week.

Nevertheless, works in the US are generally satisfied with their jobs in most areas. According to an August 2016 Gallup poll, laborers were particularly pleased with physical safety conditions, relations with their coworkers, and hour flexibility. However, ranked low on the list of conditions was on-the-job stress. About 34% of workers were satisfied with the amount of work-related stress, compared to 61% of workers who were happy with their boss.

Overview

A 2014 report by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) evidenced 40% of those in the US felt very or extremely stressed in their positions, and 75% of respondents said their levels of stress were worse than that of a previous generation. While the amount of work hours dropped among generations, today’s workers report more on-the-job tension. Part of this thinking and the dropped hours coincide with the Great Recession of the late 2000s. Starting at the end of 2007 and finishing in mid-2009, work hours dropped by an average of about 43 hours per year. Those who were fortunate enough to maintain employment encountered smaller staffs and heavier workloads. Work hours steadily increased by about 40 hours per year between 2009 and 2014 as the economy recovered.

Also contributing to higher stress levels are advancements in technology. Innovation, invention, and technology improved work environments overall with machines and computers making fields such as manufacturing, medicine, and communications easier and decreasing the number of human hours needed to perform a task. However, technology and electronic devices tightened the connection between the job and employees. A worker can check into the company through email or text message in the middle of dinner, interrupting the life-work balance.

Socioeconomic status may also influence the level of occupational stress. According to two studies by social epidemiologist Michael Marmot in 1997 and 2004, having more flexibility in one’s position allows for better health and longevity. Those more likely to be in this position are individuals who have higher career status compared to rank-and-file employees. Chief executive officers (CEOs) and corporate titans are more likely to have control over their professional lives as they can determine their level of responsibilities; whereas, the administrative assistants at their companies do not have such freedom.

Occupational stress has been associated with physical and behavioral health problems but understanding the links between them has varied. Workplace stress has been linked to digestive and musculoskeletal problems, sleep disorders, and fatigue. Stressed workers are less productive and are more likely to be absent or leave a company. However, studies on work stress connection to cardiovascular diseases and obesity have differed. A 2010 study published by the International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health in 2016 analyzed 224 Iranian drivers, an occupation considered to be high in work-related stress, and measured them for risk factors of cardiovascular diseases. Researchers found that those who reported suffering from “average to acute stress” and “acute stress,” about 75% of those in the study, showed an increase in blood glucose levels compared to those who experienced “average stress.” Yet, there was no correlation between cardiovascular health and work stress as there was little change between the two groups. A 2015 meta-analysis and review published by the International Journal of Obesity of multiple studies involving occupational stress and obesity showed no link between the two.

As a way to combat occupational stress, companies and organizations are creating a work culture that is conducive to flexibility and resources. Human resource managers and occupational experts suggest shrinking dependency on smartphones and emails outside of regular office hours and insisting that employees take their allotted vacation time. Companies can also establish a stress policy that allows employees to seek help dealing with work-related stress through stress-management activities, promote regular checks into the stress levels of employees, and develop teams and groups composed of experts in stress-management and self-care. For example, the US Navy uses Special Psychiatric Rapid Intervention Teams (SPRINT) to assist units that have witnessed traumatic events through psychological first aid (a way to reduce the effects of the trauma), voluntary counseling that is unique to the military experience, and training that encourages resiliency self-care that sailors can apply in stressful situations.

Further Reading

1 

“Average Annual Hours Worked by Persons Engaged for United States.” Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, 29 June 2016, fred.stlouisfed.org/series/AVHWPEUSA065NRUG.

2 

Biglari, Hamed, et al. “Relationship between Occupational Stress and Cardiovascular Diseases Risk Factors in Drivers.” International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health, vol. 29, no. 6, Nov. 2016, pp. 895–901.

3 

Kivimäki, M, et al. “Job Strain and Risk of Obesity: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Cohort Studies.” International Journal of Obesity, vol. 39, no. 11, Nov. 2015, pp. 1597–60.

4 

Millegan, Jeffrey, et al. “Responding to Trauma at Sea: A Case Study in Psychological First Aid, Unique Occupational Stressors, and Resiliency Self-Care.” Military Medicine, vol. 181, no. 11, Nov. 2016, pp. e1692-e1695.

5 

Milligan, Susan. “My Job Ate My Vacation.” HR Magazine, vol. 61, no. 3, Apr. 2016, p. 28.

6 

Newport, Frank, and Jim Harter. “U.S. Workers’ Satisfaction with Job Dimensions Increases.” Gallup, 29 Aug. 2016, www.gallup.com/poll/195143/workers-satisfied-job-dimensions.aspx.

7 

Robertson, Ivan. “Stress Avoidance.” Occupational Health, vol. 69, no. 1, Jan. 2017, pp. 16–17.

8 

Saad, Gad. “Job Control, Occupational Status and Your Health.” Psychology Today, 15 Sept. 2010, www.psychologytoday.com/blog/homo-consumericus/201009/job-control-occupational-status-and-your-health.

9 

Synder, Benjamin and Stacy Jones. “Americans Work Hard, but People in These 15 Countries Work Longer Hours.” Fortune, 11 Nov. 2015, fortune.com/2015/11/11/chart-work-week-oecd.

Citation Types

Type
Format
MLA 9th
Dunn, Tamara. "Occupational Stress." Principles of Health: Anxiety and Stress, edited by Lindsey L. Wilner & Megan E. Shaal, Salem Press, 2020. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=POHAnxiety_0013.
APA 7th
Dunn, T. (2020). Occupational Stress. In L. L. Wilner & M. E. Shaal (Eds.), Principles of Health: Anxiety and Stress. Salem Press. online.salempress.com.
CMOS 17th
Dunn, Tamara. "Occupational Stress." Edited by Lindsey L. Wilner & Megan E. Shaal. Principles of Health: Anxiety and Stress. Hackensack: Salem Press, 2020. Accessed October 22, 2025. online.salempress.com.