By Susan Adams | Forbes
Some 83% of American workers say they feel stressed out by their jobs, up from 73% a year ago, according to a new study by Harris Interactive for Everest College. The No. 1 reason workers feel stressed, according to the survey: low pay. This is the third year of the survey and the third year that less- than-adequate paychecks were the top stressor for workers. The study was conducted by phone among 1,000 adults between Feb. 21 and March 3.
While pay was the biggest source of stress last year, the percentage of workers who pegged it at No. 1 rose this year, from 11% to 14%. This year unreasonable workload also ranked as a top stressor, with 14% saying they had too much to do, up from 9% last year. Annoying coworkers and commuting tied for the next-most-stressful parts of the job, at 11%. The next-worst stressor was working in a job that was not the person’s chosen career (8%), poor work-life balance (7%), lack of opportunity for advancement (6%) and fear of being fired (4%).
“More companies are hiring, but workers are still weary and stressed out from years of a troubled economy that has brought about longer hours, layoffs and budget cuts,” said John Swartz, regional director of career services at Everest College, in a statement. Though the unemployment rate has ticked down to 7.6% from 8.2% a year ago, the picture for people who might want to look for a new job hasn’t improved. As of January 2013, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were three unemployed people for each job opening, roughly the same number as a year ago.
Statement from David Weissman, director of Rose Law Group Employment Law Dept.: “Not surprisingly, as the level of workplace dissatisfaction has risen among American workers during the economic downturn, so has the number of employment discrimination charges filed with the EEOC. For example, 99,412 discrimination charges were filed in 2012, compared to 75,768 in 2006. In all likelihood, this is a result of increased layoffs/terminations and decreased wages, hours and benefits during this period. As a result, it is more important than ever for employers to properly manage their human resources activities, including providing proper training to supervisors, accurately and completely documenting adverse actions taken against employees, and consistent enforcement of company policies and workplace rules.
Also: Arizona women paid fairer than most in U.S.
If you’d like to discuss immigration matters, Brian Bergin, bbergin@roselawgroup.com
