Office workers are feeling stressed, survey shows

By Lee I-chia  /  Staff reporter

A job bank yesterday said its survey showed that 91 percent of office workers feel under pressure, mostly from work, and 41 percent have lost control of their emotions at work.

1111 Job Bank vice president Daniel Lee (李大華) said that 59.3 percent of respondents who considered themselves under pressure named “workplace stress” as the No. 1 source of pressure, followed by “economic stress” (39.2 percent) and “stress from leading an intense life without enough time” (16.5 percent).

The most common source of workplace stress came from worrying about a job with no prospects, Lee said, adding that other common sources of stress included having a disagreeable or incompetent superior, a heavy workload, working under time pressure and not getting a raise or promotion.

The survey also showed that 41 percent of respondents had lost their temper at work.

Workplace stress also caused some to suffer from insomnia, depression, anxiety or fights with friends and relatives.

Lee said office workers in the “medical, agricultural, environment,” “information technology,” and “construction and real-estate” industries self-reported as having the heaviest pressure from work.

He said most workers choose to tolerate workplace stress to avoid conflict, but long-term suppressed emotions can cause chronic harm to mental and physical health.

The job bank suggests workers relieve stress by taking up hobbies, doing regular exercise, participating in outdoor activities and meeting with friends and relatives.

Lee said companies should also actively care about employees’ physical and mental health by providing incentive travel, spiritual growth classes or giving employees a fair chance of getting a raise or promotion

The telephone survey was conducted from Aug. 15 to Oct. 1 and collected 1,260 valid samples for analysis.