JOB STRESS AND WORKING CONDITIONS: IRELAND IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE. ESRI RESEARCH SERIES NUMBER 84 NOVEMBER 2018

Russell, Helen and Maître, Bertrand and Watson, Dorothy and Fahey, Éamonn (2018) JOB STRESS AND WORKING CONDITIONS: IRELAND IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE. ESRI RESEARCH SERIES NUMBER 84 NOVEMBER 2018. UNSPECIFIED.

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Abstract

Stress in the workplace is an issue of growing concern. There is an increasing recognition that job stress has significant implications for the physical and mental wellbeing of workers and costs for employers and the economy. The British Health and Safety Executive estimates the cost of work-related stress, anxiety and depression to be in the region of £5.2 billion in the UK for the year 2013/2014. Health and Safety legislation in Ireland, and the EU more widely, specifies that employers have a duty of care to ensure that the safety, health and welfare of employees are not unreasonably compromised by work. The duty of care extends to personal injury and the mental health of workers. In the current study, we use two waves of a European-wide dataset, the European Working Conditions Survey, carried out in 2010 and 2015, to examine the working conditions that are associated with job stress. We focus in particular on Ireland and the UK, but also make comparisons with other countries in Western Europe. We draw on prevailing theories and the extensive research-evidence base to identify a range of job demands that are potential stressors and job resources that are proposed to moderate the effects of high work demands, and thus reduce job stress.

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