Overwork Leading to Stress and Burnout: One Tuesday I woke up frustrated and exhausted from the previous day’s work. It was 6 PM and I had to be at work by 9 PM. I, along with millions of others from countries such as India, Pakistan, and Philippines have been sucked into the corporate jungle working ungodly hours at call centers in order to appease customers from across the world. I would term this as defying the law of the biological clock, however the timings are just a part of the stress caused from these corporate jobs. One can explain the growth in jobs as a result of the westernization of Asian countries.
However, it is important to also look at how this has also impacted the culture of these countries leading to further stress. Tomoyuki Iwashita from Japan, the author of “Why I quit the company” in the book “75 Arguments,” joined the corporate world after graduating from university describes his job and company as a big and well known trading company with about 6000 employees all over the world with a lot of competition to get into this and other similar companies, which promise young people a wealthy and successful future. He was set on course to be a Japanese “yuppie. ” (Iwashita 402).
Emmy Werner and Ruth Smith who are social scientists have exactly described this career phase as follows: “When young adults enter the job market, they tend to focus on the status, salary, and demands of the job. They are willing to work overtime, to take irregular shifts, or to travel if doing so means promotion or job security. ” (qtd. in Berger 565). That’s the same picture one sees when beginning a career. One would think of this section of the corporate world as fascinating which included more money than the regular paying jobs, working at ungodly hours, shuttle services, perks and other incentives.
The real picture would include a lot of more things one would chose to ignore in the beginning. Stress, over-worked employees, frustration, in security, depression, alcoholism, rampant drug abuse, etc. Although working for certain big companies can be a good to start for an employee and provide stability, the negative effects on this type of work can outweigh its advantages. Imagine being a workaholic and ignoring life’s responsibilities. It might not ring a bell for many, but is a way of life for many current employees.
Working for long hours with duration ranging from 8-15 or more hours a day is not uncommon these days. With the competition nowadays companies do not hesitate to over work their employees leading to reduced time spent doing other daily activities affecting a lot of things. Overwork causes job stress which could be devastating, putting workers at risk for physical illness, marital strain, depression, anxiety and sometimes leading to suicide. Working for longer hours mean improper schedules, longer hours on the computer, extra strain extra efforts all leading to deterioration of a person’s health.
Physical illness can affect various areas of one’s life for example; relationships, work, spiritual beliefs and how one socializes with other and it also can make one feel sad, frightened, worried or angry. It can also make one lonely and isolated from family and friends. This is even more harmful when it’s not talked about. Some other symptoms such as tiredness, poor sleep and loss of appetite also occur. Anxiety can cause one to worry, fear the worst and pressurized which could further lead to problems with blood pressure and heart attacks.
Working at ungodly hours, shorter breaks, a lot of work can cause sudden depression to a person’s life. A person working in the above said environment may have to get used to it. It may be exciting at first and challenging, but over a period of time overwork causes stress which takes a toll on the person’s mental and physical health. This may also cause bad influence on others around the individual, preferably one’s family. What happens when a father is not there for his child or a husband not there for his wife? We see these types of cases in ever working class household.
A child’s life being ignored due to the parents absence is a much talked about topic today. Specially in the case of single-parents. Two researchers, Hewitt and Schor define the work-family conflict as, “Most people in the industrialized world will combine employment with the care of others -children, adults or elders – at some stage in their working lives. Yet paid work is taking up even more of people’s lives, leaving little time to fit in other demands and activities. ” (qtd. in Lewis, 1). Bringing work home is a thing of the past; companies are okay with people working late.
In fact companies pressurize employees to finish work as soon as possible. This affects a person’s lifestyle and family well being. In countries like India, family bonding is given top priority, with people of age 25 living with their parents proving the previous statement, whereas in America, a dollar value plays a more important role than spending time with family. However, after the introduction of work culture similar to that of America in countries like India, people there are following similar patterns.
Kids’ moving out of their parent’s home was a huge sin in the past but is common now due to the present work culture. Work nowadays causes people to spend more time at work and less time bonding with families, paying attention to their kids or spouses, ignoring household chores. It can also cause behavioral distress towards their families. Like for instance, spontaneous arguments and fights between spouses due to job stress sometimes even causing separation of families. Separations cause a lot of stress, they could affect long-term relationships cutting short, affecting children’s lives by being complicated.
In fact it insults the family culture of certain countries like India and Pakistan where divorces and moving out are considered morally wrong and done only as a last resort. Thus, family time being sacrificed because of job stress is one the effects of working for longer hours. Ignoring family responsibilities like marriage and kids is another major affect. This type of work culture does make one ignore their families and certain worldly responsibilities, one of the major ones being their own well-being. The most important aspect of one’s life is health.
Health of a person can in no circumstance be compromised. Isn’t that the reason why the doctors and hospitals exist? When referring to health, one has to be psychologically and physically fit. Stress by overworking causes the problems mentioned in the above paragraphs. In Japan, which is also one the countries which has been westernized in a large extent is popular for the number of deaths caused due to overwork . It has been titled “Karoshi. ” Noel Williams, author of the book “The Right to Life in Japan” defines “Karoshi. A socio-medical term which refers to both physical death-particularly of illness relating to cerebral blood vessels (such as cerebral haemorrhage, cerebral thrombosis, and the effusion of blood inside the arachnoid) and illness of the heart (such as myocarditis and cardiac insufficiency, heart diseases which result from a lack of blood to the heart) and social work brought on by overwork. It is a big cause of concern and fear in Japanese companies since the number of deaths is so huge that people working in these companies admitted to having a fear of succumbing to “Karoshi”. Williams 74) He goes on to say that concern about “Karoshi” has been expressed not only in the mass media but also by those working in companies themselves. A survey by the Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance Company demonstrates unease amongst members when interviewed and asked about “Karoshi. ” The survey showed that almost a half of those salaried workers interviewed feared they would fall victim to karoshi. Amongst those of senior rank-section chiefs and above-the percentage rose markedly with two-thirds of those surveyed expressing worries that they would work themselves to death. William 74). Death is also a part of the affects of overwork of employees in such companies. What are the facts? “According to Wall Street Journal, in 1990, Japanese workers spent 12 hours a day working and commuting, which is about 2. 5 hours more per day than their counterparts in four Western Nations. ” (Metcalf and Felible, 152). Thus, by this we know what stress does to one’s well being and it may even lead to deaths. It is a big challenge in this type of industry to balance work and a healthy lifestyle. Examples of affects of stress on a person’s health are as follows.
Overworking can cause mental problems reflecting to the lack of feelings towards others. This means that one would stop feeling emotions and become indifferent to others. Anxiety can cause heart attacks. Depression can cause suicide. Even though these big companies offer health care benefits and paid vacations to the employee and the families there are a lot of other possibilities which could deteriorate a person’s health. Although there are many negatives in working in a corporate job, there are advantages of working in this field.
Getting started in a big company is a dream for many as it can make one feel confident, important and set for life. Living in countries like India for example, with saturated job markets and business being predominant, call centers and similar companies are a heaven for students who wish to make a fresh start in life without getting into retail businesses. Adding to that, corporate offices offer a much higher pay package than what one would make while working for a business. Money is always a big factor in life especially in relation to jobs, as it gives the ability to a person to fulfill needs.
Authors of a book, “Think India” note, “The foreign companies signing for these services had no idea they were triggering social changes a world away: rarely had Indian men and women worked side by side through the night. And suddenly recent college grads were making more money than their parents. ” (Rai and Simon 24). This exactly explains the feeling of independence people felt after working for these big companies. Usually, one comes across people just out of college who try to be independent, but it also has a lot of people who are the sole earners of a family.
Since these companies offer a lot of incentives at work including healthcare, vacation, personal trainings, other perks and a possibility of rising to higher levels it is a very lucrative deal to many as all these things make the job more exciting. Working for a corporate office is a start to a promising future, if a balance in life is maintained. If one strikes a cord between personal and work life it can certainly pave a path to successful future. Working in companies can make one go through different things, observe different cultures, meet a lot of variety of people and all this can be a good learning in life.
It can lead one to attain a positive emotional state which would make it possible for a person to fulfill certain needs and aspirations. Once a person finds satisfaction in a job, it helps them to learn new skills, gain experience, and earn credibility. A corporate culture is always a good place to learn different skills like dealing with a lot more people at work when compared to working for a business. It teaches one discipline, compatibility, responsibility and a lot of other things. A person with a new job starts of by learning slow and rising to new levels with success on the way.
The kind of effort to learn newer things and master certain skills is developed while working for big companies. There is also a factor of competition which makes one strive for success and certainly one of the biggest arguments one would make is a person finds a way to be financially stable after being dependent on other people for money. Working for companies like call centers might sound interesting and attractive to many, however, stress from overwork and burnout affecting one’s health should be reconsidered and avoided if possible.
Striking a balance in life while working is hardly possible with these kinds of jobs which keep a person occupied most of the time. It may seem lucrative at first but does not usually turn out to be that attractive. It may even attract a lot of yet-to-finish-school students who are trying to make a quick buck but it leads to a lack of focus in school and in many cases leading to dropping out of school. Money may seem to be an important factor when related to work but there are certain reasons why it could lead to a downfall of a person.
A good pay would give the ability to a person to spend money on substances like alcohol and drugs, which lead to the ill health. Once a person is addicted a lot of money is spent on hospital bills, rehab, etc. So, one could assume here that more money would not always lead to a good thing for a person working in the talked about corporate world. There are also instances where one would get so busy with the corporate world that they would start ignoring their personal and family lives.
They get so involved with their work and efforts to prove themselves and move further into the hierarchy that it most often develops feelings of fear, insecurity, anxiety and depression. After giving a lot of thought over big companies with lucrative jobs, we come to a conclusion that these companies overwork the employees causing stress and burnout. Hence, working for big companies is not only bad but it leads to a downfall of the employee. Works Cited Berger, Kathleen . Work in Middle Adulthood. Catherine Woods. 2005. http://books. google. om/. Web. 11/29/2009. C. W. Metcalf. Humor: An Antidote for Terminal Professionalism. Lighten Up. 1992. http://books. google. com/. Perseus Books. Web. 11/25/2009. Iwashita, Tomoyuki. Why I Quit The Company. 75 Arguments. Alan Ainsworth. New York: Mc Graw Hill. 2008. 402-405. Print. Lewis , Suzan. Rethinking Employment: An Organizational Culture Change Framework. Sage Publication. http://books. google. com/. Web. 11/19/2009. Rai, Vinay and William Simmon . India Shaped by Its History. Think India. Dutton. ttp://books. google. com/. 2007. Web. 11/25/2009. Williams, Noel. The social value of death. The Right To Life in Japan. 1997. Routledge. http://books. google. com/. Web. 11/15/2009. Links to Books : Berger, Kathleen . Work in Middle Adulthood. Catherine Woods. 2005. http://books. google. com/. Web. 11/29/2009. URL: http://books. google. com/books? id=JsfgHiWqWeYC=RA1-PA565=job+stress+and+family==I1MTS4DyAY6MNrecuaAL#v=onepage=job%20stress%20and%20family=false C. W. Metcalf. Humor: An Antidote for Terminal Professionalism.
Lighten Up. 1992. http://books. google. com/. Perseus Books. Web. 11/25/2009. URL: http://books. google. com/books? id=AzDOzS4BNKAC=PA151=karoshi=37ITS7i2BoTWNPGp_PcK#v=onepage=karoshi=false Lewis , Suzan. Rethinking Employment: An Organizational Culture Change Framework. Sage Publication. http://books. google. com/. Web. 11/19/2009. URL: http://books. google. com/books? id=tgUIwsrNH8sC=PA112=Lewis+,+Suzan=drwTS6XANo-SNuaS8e8K#v=onepage=Lewis%20%2C%20Suzan=false Rai, Vinay and William Simmon .
India Shaped by Its History. Think India. Dutton. http://books. google. com/. 2007. Web. 11/25/2009. URL: http://books. google. com/books? id=JCx8OtS2ADIC=frontcover=think+india=Cr0TS8u_GJK0NqWrhIQL#v=onepage=This%20IT%20success%20story=false Williams, Noel. The social value of death. The Right To Life in Japan. 1997. Routledge. http://books. google. com/. Web. 11/15/2009. URL : http://books. google. com/books? id=HiZsZqvejgYC=PT86=karoshi=2kgTS_f4JoLWMIL7tbsL#v=onepage=karoshi=false
