Twenty-First Century Issues Impacting Turnover of IT Professionals

Identifying the precursors of turnover has been the subject of examination for the past four decades. IT professionals are a critical group of employees in the current knowledge-driven economy, and as such, they experience unique job stressors. This chapter explores recent research on the organizational stressors that influence IT turnover intentions. The goal is to provide insights on how organizations can begin to stem burnout, turnover intentions, and eventual turnover while improving work-related wellbeing. A revised model of work-related wellbeing is also presented in this chapter. Another objective is to discuss current issues in the IT domain and provide new research directions. New research for the IT turnover literature will provide information to scholars and practitioners on how they might improve and alleviate the impact of turnover on organizations.

The Antecedents, Consequences, and Mediating Role of Workload among Chinese Courier Drivers

The growth of e-commerce in China can be regarded as a significant factor in the increase in occupational stress and the voluntary turnover of courier drivers. This paper aims to investigate selected occupational stress factors behind the turnover intentions of Chinese courier drivers. Using data from 229 couriers employed at the largest delivery companies in China, this study applies structural equation modelling to investigate not only the direct relationships between job-stress factors and turnover intentions but also the extent to which workload indirectly mediates turnover intentions among couriers. The results indicate that a combination of high workload with social stressors leads to turnover intentions. In particular, it was found that workload completely mediated the relationship between both the independent variables and the intention to leave the industry, suggesting that when workloads are high, the net effect of negative work experiences with regard to verbal aggression and ambiguous customer expectations increases the likelihood of an intention to leave the industry. Although restricted to China, this is one of the first studies investigating the effects of courier drivers’ job stressors which highlights the importance of delivery companies working with staff to mitigate job stressors to reduce turnover intention.

Burnout, inter-role conflicts, and job performance among bankers who have children during social isolation

Social isolation is a globally accepted policy of governments worldwide to halt the rapid spread of coronavirus in the community. As a result, all banks must be closed, and bank officers must work from home through the Internet instead of at their offices. Hence, stressors and conflicts wreak havoc on bank officers’ mental health and work productivity. This study focused on determining the influence of burnout and inter-role conflicts on the working performance of bankers who have got children. An online structured questionnaire was utilized to survey 326 bankers throughout the nation. The PLS-SEM and Smart PLS were adopted to analyze and test hypotheses. The findings corroborated the harmful effects of burnout and inter-role conflicts on the job performance of bankers who have got children. Three variables were determined to positively affect burnout, such as occupational stress, parenting stress, and inter-role conflicts, whereas the role ambiguity and role overload sparked the inter-role conflicts of bankers. This study recommended four practical suggestions for both bankers and banks’ policymakers, including: achieving work-family balance is a challenging task; the need to implement more robust organizational support policies to remove the burden and job-stressors; the administrative workload should be reduced and cut off; and bankers individually should get familiar with saying “No” to the unimportant and taking care of themselves during pandemic isolation.

Stressors and level of stress among different nursing positions and the associations with hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension: a national questionnaire survey

Background Nurses are faced with varying job stressors depending on their positions and duties. Few previous studies have compared job stress and related chronic conditions among different nursing positions. The objectives were to compare job stressors among clinical registered nurses, nurse practitioners, and head nurses and explore the impact of job stressors and stress level on hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension. Methods Secondary data extracted from a survey of health-care workers conducted from May to July 2014 across 113 hospitals in Taiwan was used. This analysis included 17,152 clinical registered nurses, 1438 nurse practitioners, and 2406 head nurses. Socio-demographic characteristics, job stressors, stress levels, and hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension variables were extracted. Results Perceived stressors differed among clinical registered nurses, nurse practitioners, and head nurses, but overall stress level did not. Nurse practitioners and head nurses showed significantly higher prevalence of hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension than clinical registered nurses. Higher stress levels, age, body mass index, work hours, and caring for family members were positively associated with hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension. After adjustment for these variables, risk of hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension did not differ across the nursing positions. Conclusions Although stressors vary by different nursing positions, overall stress level does not. Hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension are related to stress level, age, body mass index, weekly working hours, and caring for family members. Hence, alleviating job stress and avoiding long working hours are likely to reduce the risk of hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension in nurses.

Canadian Career Firefighters’ Mental Health Impacts and Priorities

Firefighters’ perceptions of mental health can inform management. This qualitative study explored Canadian career firefighters’ experiences, needs, and research priorities with respect to mental health. Thirty-nine career firefighters (33 men, 6 women) of different ranks and geographic locales were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and qualitatively analyzed using thematic analysis within an interpretive description approach. Firefighters reported that critical incidents and chronic job stressors contributed to mental health symptoms that led to burnout, compassion fatigue, and mental and physical injury. They were concerned with family impacts, like lack of full openness, reduced financial stability, and risk of divorce, and work impacts, like interpersonal conflict, lack of support to fellow firefighters, task avoidance, and absenteeism. A broad array of barriers and facilitators were found in firefighter work, culture, programs, social supports, health care, and societal factors. Variability in access to help, the changing fire service, and the complexity of knowing what to do to achieve mental health were evident across themes. Firefighters identified the need for research in four areas: awareness and monitoring, understanding etiology of mental health, better prevention and treatment, and access to care. Across domains of inquiry, context “two sides to the coin” and uncertainty were overarching themes.

Work stress related cardiovascular diseases among construction professionals

PurposeCardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are responsible for one-third of global deaths. Work stress is a major risk factor for CVDs in the workforce. Construction professionals endure excessive work stress, yet their vulnerability to CVDs remains underexplored. The study investigated the prevalence of CVDs among construction professionals and its relationships to job stressors, stress coping methods and socio-demographics.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey was conducted among construction professionals in Australia wherein data related to job stressor experiences, stress management methods adopted, and incidents of CVDs were collected. Structural path analysis was conducted to discover associations.FindingsJunior level professionals reported higher incidents of angina and heart muscle weakening than others. Statistically significant positive associations were discovered between the reported CVDs, and job stressors such as excessive workload, unpredictable work hours, lack of support, discrimination and work–life conflict and negative stress coping methods such as consuming alcohol and/or drugs, emotional eating and aggression. However, no evidence was found to support the claim that demographic factors such as age and gender were also risk factors for CVDs.Originality/valueThe workers' compensation system provides financial protection to injured employees. It extends similar protection for work-related illnesses; however, it is more difficult to prove work-related causes for illnesses. The study provides scientific evidence to support the recognition of CVDs among construction professionals as work-related diseases, mediated by work stress.

The Relationship between Job Stressors and Organizational Change Among Academic Staff at Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Cawangan Kelaantan.

Change usually occurs when an organization replaces its management, technological change or product diversification, et cetera. However, organizational change can increase work stress levels, and employees need to cope with new and old stressors. This research emphasizes the factors of job stressors, such as role overload, role ambiguity, unprofitability, poor peer-relation, and strenuous working conditions. The purpose of this research was to identify the relationship between job stressors and organizational change among academic staff at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Cawangan Kelantan (Machang Campus) and to identify the most affected job stressor during the organizational change. The research was non-experimental which was categorized by correlation. Quantitative data was collected using a questionnaire contained three separate sections and was distributed to 155 academic staff at UiTM Cawangan Kelantan (Machang Campus). The reliability analysis was conducted and the Cronbach Alpha value ranged from 0.529 to 0.852. Pearson Correlation was used to examine the relationship between job stressors and organizational change, and it was found that all variables of job stressors had a significant relationship with organizational change except for unprofitability. It was also found that the most affected job stressor during organizational change was poor peer-relation. The researchers hope that this study would educate employees regarding factors affecting job stressors towards organizational change. Keywords: Organizational change, role overload, role ambiguity, unprofitability, poor peer-relation, strenuous working conditions.

Individual and organizational perceptions of hospital workers during COVID-19: the link with burnout

Background The COVID-19 crisis poses challenges to healthcare systems and their employees. Medical staff are at the front of the battle against COVID-19. They must cope with a crisis accompanied by personal health and occupational ramifications and ongoing job stressors, which may lead to adverse mental health symptoms and may affect the quality of medical care provided to patients. This study evaluated health workers' perceptions and concerns about the COVID-19 crisis and its management in an Israeli hospital. Methods At the end of the pandemic's first wave in Israel, 547 healthcare workers responded to an online survey, which inquired about COVID-19 concerns at the individual and family level, perceptions at the national and organizational level, perceptions of the way the crisis was managed, self-assessment of coping with the crisis and burnout, and demographics. Results Findings showed that healthcare workers expressed deep concerns for family members and apprehension at a national level. Respondents noted that they were coping well with the crisis while expressing negative perceptions of how the crisis was managed. The regression model showed that concerns for family members, perceptions at the system level, working directly with COVID-19 patients, and having negative perceptions towards the crisis management at the national level, were associated with burnout. Conclusions The findings of this study deepen our understanding of issues that require systemic attention to strengthen mental resilience among hospital staff. Several actions are recommended to improve healthcare systems' ability to continue fighting the virus and confront future health crises: Further examination and monitoring of healthcare workers' concerns and job stressors. Providing psychosocial support plans for frontline workers to ensure their safety and health and prevent burnout. Strengthening supportive organizational culture. Key messages Healthcare workers express deep concerns and perceptions associated with burnout. Health services management needs a good understanding of workers' concerns and develop strategies to address them.