Unpaid Work Stressors and its Impact on Occupational Stress: Is it a Gender-driven Science?

An emanating question is: “Do females actually encounter greater stress level compared to their male counterparts in post-modern working environments?” Research on occupational stress originally posited that there is a blurred difference between the amount of stress men and women experienced at work. Moreover, men and women experienced a similar level of burnout as envisaged in a review of 183 studies on occupational stress. Progressively studies show that working women are likely to report more life stress than men.

In this backdrop work stress and its management has become a dubious topic. Work stress is an undesirable psychological process that occurs in response to environmental pressures. Literature shows that there are two types of “stressors”challenge and hindrance stressors experienced by individuals. While challenge stressors are related to workload, pressure to complete tasks and time urgency, hindrance stressors keep you from attaining work-goals. Further, stress is categorized by demands and resources. Every employee irrespective of their gender faces work-related demands. Demands are responsibilities, pressures, obligations and uncertainties in the workplace. Resources are assets within an employee’s control that is used to resolve the demands.

In this context it is useful to discuss the female’s responsibility towards the household. Studies reliably illustrate that when both husband and wife work full- time outside the home, the latter carries remarkably greater household responsibilities. Traditionally in majority of Sri Lankan households the cleaning, shopping and managing of finances is carried out by the wife. However, what is the effect of household responsibilities on work stress? A woman experiences stress from two major stressors - work she is paid for (paid-work stressors) and work she is not paid for ( unpaid work stressors). The latter is the household/ family responsibilities shouldered by the woman employees. In this light, it is certain that if both spouses work the same number of hours, it is expected that wife’s total load of work is greater. This causes more stress level even if the work- related stress alone is not too high.

Employee Work Stress = PaidWork Stressors + Unpaid Work Stressors

Therefore, it can be said that paidwork stressors doesn’t differ between the genders, but unpaid work stressors clearly does between the genders. It is also important to fathom the potential sources of stress and its consequences on the working class. Potential sources of stress are threefolds -environmental, organisational and personal factors. Consequences of stress are three- folds as well. These are physiological, psychological and behavioural symptoms of the employees. In this backdrop it is valuable to study the different unpaid work stressors that affect occupational stress in employees depending on the gender.

Studies show that personal factors are delved into and thereby trifurcated into family problems, economic problems and personality. While female employees bear household responsibilities it is implied that family problems and economic issues become a part of their unpaid work obligations. Further, the feminine persona of female employees contributes towards both paid and unpaid work pressures. In anticipation of resolving these demands such employees use resources within their scope.

Visible interpretation of experienced stress

These stressors experienced by females emphasises negative aspects on occupational stress level. Personal factors such as marriage problems, relationship issues, children’s concerns aggravate the occupational stress level as unpaid work stressors and life stress gradually increases. Irrespective of the income level, economic problems demand effective money management and managing spending based on the earnings. These increase the unpaid work pressures generally borne by females.

It is paramount to discuss the consequences of experienced stress. Physiological symptoms such as headaches, high blood pressure and heart disease are frequently experienced by females over males. Unpaid work stressors could even lead to anxiety and depression which are psychological symptoms. Further, absenteeism from work is a behavioural symptom shown by most female employees. Indeed unpaid work stressors and its impact on occupational stress is a gender-driven science.