The Health and Safety Authority defines Work-Related Stress (WRS) as stress caused or made worse by work. It simply refers to when a person perceives the work environment in such a way that his or her reaction involves feelings of an inability to cope. It may be caused by perceived/real pressures/deadlines/threats/anxieties within the working environment. Ireland’s frontline emergency services are under immense strain at the moment due to a range of issues. Worryingly, the issues do not appear to be anywhere close to a resolution and staff have taken the decision to take industrial actions. During the economic downturn in Ireland from 2008 onwards, a moratorium on recruitment was introduced in the public and civil service which was not lifted until 2015. This cessation in new employees entering professions such as our security and healthcare professions intensified pressures and the workload on those in the workforce. In 2018, a report by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) was published and identified that the number of Irish workers who described themselves as stressed at work more than doubled in the five years from 2010 to 2015, with job stress among employees jumping from 8 percent in 2010 to 17 percent in 2015. The study further acknowledged that workers who experience angry clients or had to hide their emotions were more commonly stressed. The major question to be asked from this study are how stresses amongst employees affect their performance in their role and whether it impacts their satisfaction in their job. Secondary objectives to be achieved include identifying stressors in the workplace, identifying the controls in place from management, and the need for a positive work-life balance. The hypothesis is that work-related stress has a negative impact on both workers' job performance and job satisfaction.
Literature Review
Arnold and Randall (2017, p. 380) define stress as a negative emotional state that results from the transactions between a person and their environment. It is something caused or made worse by work. They suggest the word stress is derived from the Latin word stringere meaning to draw tight. The term stress is not defined in terms of environmental pressures but instead its impact on mental well-being.
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APA (2019) suggests some stress can be beneficial at times, producing a boost that provides the drive and energy to help people get through situations like exams or work deadlines. However, an extreme amount of stress can have health consequences
Sources of work-related stress
Organizational success depends highly on human resources. Human resource departments therefore have a responsibility in ensuring that employees are content in their roles and that the threat of stress is minimized. Identifying stressors at work is key to limiting the risks of employee absenteeism or industrial unrest which may adversely affect an organization's profits or cause reputational damage. Cartwright and Cooper (1997) set out the major stresses of work originally suggested by Cooper, Cooper, and Eaker (1988).
1. Working conditions
Physical surroundings such as noise, poor lighting, or physical set up of office or assembly line
2. Shift work
Working irregular hours can impact sleeping patterns and family and social life. Additionally, studies have shown that shift work impacts negatively on workers’ health.
3. Long hours
Employees working extensive hours may suffer from health issues and work performance may slow. The European Working Time Directive limits employees to a maximum 48hr working week.
4. Travel
Many workers must commute long distances to attend their place of work due to low employment where they are from or forced to live outside cities to rent prices.
5. New Technology
The modern workplace is now centered on new and emerging technology. Workers are required to learn new skills in order to do their job.
6. Work Overload
French and Caplan (1973) suggest that quantitative refers to having too much to do, whereas qualitative means work that is too difficult.
Furthermore, Cooper and Payne (1978, p. 85-88) identify role ambiguity, role conflict, and responsibility as three additional factors of stress within an organization. An employee can be overcome with unnecessary stress when there is a lack of clarity about what the objectives and expectations are of them in the role. Role conflict exists when a worker feels they must do something they do not wish to do such as when there exists two expectations of them between two different groups. Responsibility, particularly in management roles is an identified cause of stress. Responsibility for getting the best out of employees or achieving set targets brings pressure. It often involves attendance at meetings and working alone.
Mind (2015) conducted a survey amongst emergency service personnel in 2015. The survey concluded that of 3500 surveyed, 87 percent of workers experienced stress at some point while working in their role. Emergency service workers are also far less likely to face stress issues due to the nature of their job and perceptions from the public and employers.
Overview of Research Approach / Proposed Methodology
It is proposed to use a mix of both quantitative research methods and qualitative research methods to conduct this study. According to DeFranzo (2011), quantitative research is used to quantify the problem by way of generating numerical data or data that can be transformed into usable statistics. It is used to quantify attitudes, opinions, behaviors, and other defined variables. Check and Schutt (2012, p. 394 state qualitative research methods are designed to capture life as participants experience it rather than in categories predetermined by the researcher.
The aim of this proposed study is to identify the stressors in the workplace amongst frontline emergency service workers and how these impact work and job satisfaction. The research will further identify how these stresses are managed by employees and line managers. An extensive literature review will assist in compiling a questionnaire which will be distributed to a selection of Gardaí with varying levels of service and backgrounds. This study strives to highlight the major issue of work-related stress and its impacts on employees and in turn employers and organizations. A hypothesis put forward by this proposed study is that there is a high level of work-related stress amongst emergency service personnel due the exposure to trauma, interactions with the public, and workload. Frontline personnel often have no definite job description and take on multiple roles. The issue and impacts of work-related stress are not well understood in this sector and this research paper will assist in identifying how employees can be better served.
The literature will be reviewed from a range of sources such as books, journals, scholarly articles, and websites. This review will form the basis of the proposed research. The questions on the questionnaire will probe issues highlighted from the reading of previous findings and observations. I propose to conduct the survey over a four-week period. The nature of the job of emergency service personnel means it would not be possible to have surveys completed in a single day. Affording the participant time and space to complete the questionnaire at their convenience will give a more honest and accurate reflection of the stresses impacting them. Closed questions will be the main type of question used. In addition to this, space will be given for open-ended questions to give the participant the opportunity to give their own opinions.
For confidentiality reasons, the identities of participants will not be disclosed.
Limitations and project risk
There are many limitations and risks to the success of this proposed study. In terms of the quantitative research method outlined, the structured questionnaire and its closed questions will limit the data available to collect. The limited options for answers may not accurately convey a participant’s views and opinions. It will also involve a substantial amount of resources from the time consumption of compiling the questionnaire and distributing it, to collecting the results and analyzing the data. Similarly conducting interviews depends on the participant’s availability in a busy schedule. It too is time-consuming as it requires an hour per interview to be set aside including introductions and conclusions of the interview.
A risk to the project is the current environment An Garda Síochána finds themselves in. There have been numerous scandals in recent years with confidence amongst the public low. Furthermore, in the current environment with industrial action in the public service and public opinion, participants may have disdain for government and management resulting in them giving biased answers out of discontent.
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