Time pressure and heavy physical labor widespread

DGB survey - Time pressure and heavy physical labor widespread

According to a survey, almost one in three employees in Germany feels exposed to various serious stresses at work.

In the representative survey conducted by the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB), 31% of respondents stated that they were repeatedly affected by heavy physical work, time pressure, noise, as well as conflicts with colleagues and customers. The "DGB Good Work Index" is available to the German Press Agency. It is based on interviews with more than 6000 employees who were surveyed between January and April.

Multiple workloads normal for many

According to the survey, 86% of respondents are undertime pressure, one in two very often or often and a further 36% rarely. 56% are familiar with heavy physical work, 73% with ambient noise and noise, including 40% very often or often, and 65% with conflicts with colleagues or customers, although most only report rare cases.

"As a rule, jobs are characterized by various demands that often occur simultaneously," the study states. Multiple demands are the order of the day. Here, 31 percent of respondents reported all four types of stress.

Consequences for health

The more pronounced the workloads, the worse the employees rate their health and future ability to work. Of the employees who have to deal with several physical and psychological stress factors, 39% stated that they were in good health. According to the study, only seven percent of them said that they would be able to continue working under these conditions until retirement age.

In the group of employees who have none of the stress factors, 71% describe their state of health as good or very good.

38% of those surveyed stated that there had been an assessment of the risks to their job in the past two years. The DGB points out that employers are obliged to do this. DGB Chairwoman Yasmin Fahimi said: "If companies fail to meet their legal obligations in occupational health and safety, employees have to pay for it with their health. That is not acceptable." Overall, work should not make people ill.

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1. The survey conducted by the DGB in Germany revealed that a significant number of employees are affected by time pressure and other stressors at work, including heavy physical labor and conflicts with colleagues.
2. The German Press Agency reported that the DGB's Good Work Index, based on interviews with over 6000 employees, revealed that 86% of respondents are under time pressure and 56% are familiar with heavy physical work.
3. Yasmin Fahimi, the DGB Chairwoman, stated that employers have a legal obligation to assess the risks to their staff's jobs and health, and that companies failing to do so could be harming their employees' health unnecessarily.
4. The survey found that the more pronounced the workloads, the worse employees rated their health and future ability to work, with 39% of those facing multiple physical and psychological stress factors reporting poor health and low prospects of continuing to work until retirement age.
5. The study revealed that the labor market in Germany is characterized by multiple demands, with 31% of respondents reporting all four types of stress (heavy physical work, time pressure, noise, and conflicts with colleagues).

Source: www.stern.de