Your Job

A recent survey by the American Psychological Association found that one-third of American workers experience chronic work stress with low salaries, lack of opportunity for advancement and heavy workloads topping the list of contributing factors. Making things even worse, less than half of working Americans reported that they receive adequate monetary compensation or recognition for their contributions on the job. Only 43% said that recognition is based on fair and useful performance evaluations. Less than half said that their employers on a regular basis sought input from them on how to improve the work environment or do the job more effectively. Even fewer, 37%, felt that their organizations make changes based on their feedback. In APA’s most recent Stress in America survey, 65% of adults cited work as a significant source of stress. The survey pointed out that women still face disparities at work. Despite many advances in the workplace, the office still doesn’t feel like a level playing field for many women who reported feeling less valued than men. Less than half of employed women said they receive adequate monetary compensation for their work. Finding a bright side in this survey data is difficult. One of the authors of the survey, Dr. David Ballard, Psy.D., MBA, head of APA’s Center for Organizational Excellence, pointed out that “When employers acknowledge that employees have responsibilities and lives outside of work, they can take steps to promote a good work-life fit and help individuals better manage these multiple demands... Forward thinking organizations are reevaluating work practices, providing employees with resources that support wellbeing and performance and applying new technologies that help shift work from somewhere we go from 9 to 5, to something we do that is meaningful and creates value.” The American Psychological Association recently presented its eighth Psychological Healthy Workplace Awards in Washington, DC. For full details about the awards and the survey go to: APA Center for Organizational Excellence which can be found on the American Psychological Association website. The Center offers other resources for employers, such as the Good Company Newsletter and webcast and online courses for Human Resource professionals. To contact the Center online, http://www.apaexcellence.org/media. Ron Breazeale