n On the whole, <strong>UCU</strong> members employed <strong>in</strong> teach<strong>in</strong>g-<strong>and</strong>-research rolesreported lower levels <strong>of</strong> <strong>well</strong>-<strong>be<strong>in</strong>g</strong> relat<strong>in</strong>g to dem<strong>and</strong>s, control <strong>and</strong> peersupport <strong>and</strong> <strong>higher</strong> levels <strong>of</strong> work-life conflict <strong>and</strong> <strong>stress</strong> than thoseemployed <strong>in</strong> teach<strong>in</strong>g or research jobs.n <strong>UCU</strong> members employed <strong>in</strong> academic roles reported poorer <strong>well</strong>-<strong>be<strong>in</strong>g</strong> <strong>in</strong>relation to all <strong>of</strong> the HSE <strong>stress</strong>or categories than academic-related <strong>staff</strong>,together with <strong>higher</strong> levels <strong>of</strong> <strong>stress</strong> <strong>and</strong> work-life conflict.4
IntroductionWork-related <strong>stress</strong> is def<strong>in</strong>ed as ‘The adverse reaction people have toexcessive pressures or other types <strong>of</strong> dem<strong>and</strong> placed on them at work’ (HSE,nd1). It is one <strong>of</strong> the most commonly reported health problems experienced byemployees. Accord<strong>in</strong>g to data from the Labour Force Survey, work-related<strong>stress</strong>, depression or anxiety caused or made worse by the employee’s currentor most recent job, for people work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the preced<strong>in</strong>g 12 months, affected anestimated 369,000 employees <strong>in</strong> 2011/12 <strong>in</strong> the UK, with a total <strong>of</strong> 9,072,000work<strong>in</strong>g days lost (HSE, nd2). With<strong>in</strong> that total, teach<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> educationalpr<strong>of</strong>essionals reported the highest average number <strong>of</strong> days lost per worker dueto work-related <strong>stress</strong> depression <strong>and</strong> anxiety.As <strong>well</strong> as ill health <strong>and</strong> sickness absence, work-related <strong>stress</strong> has also beenassociated with reduced levels <strong>of</strong> job satisfaction, motivation <strong>and</strong> commitment,<strong>in</strong>creased employee turnover, impaired job performance <strong>and</strong> creativity, <strong>and</strong> arange <strong>of</strong> counterproductive workplace attitudes <strong>and</strong> behaviours such ascynicism, <strong>in</strong>civility <strong>and</strong> sabotage (K<strong>in</strong>man & Jones, 2001; Spector et al., 2005).The negative impact <strong>of</strong> work-related <strong>stress</strong> is also likely to ‘spill over’ <strong>in</strong>to thehome doma<strong>in</strong> <strong>and</strong> limit opportunities for relaxation <strong>and</strong> recovery, lead<strong>in</strong>g toimpaired health <strong>and</strong> job performance (Allen et al., 2000).The <strong>in</strong>cidence <strong>of</strong> workplace <strong>stress</strong> has generally risen s<strong>in</strong>ce the mid-1990s,especially <strong>among</strong> public sector workers. There is evidence, however, thatpeople work<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> education are at greater risk <strong>of</strong> work <strong>stress</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>stress</strong>-relatedabsence than most other occupational groups (as noted above). Unsurpris<strong>in</strong>gly,education has been identified as a priority area for the reduction <strong>of</strong> workrelated<strong>stress</strong> (Tyers et al., 2009). Several studies conducted <strong>in</strong> recent years<strong>in</strong>dicate that work-related <strong>stress</strong> is widespread <strong>in</strong> post compulsory education <strong>in</strong>the UK (Villeneuve-Smith, Munoz & McKenzie, 2008; Court & K<strong>in</strong>man, 2009a,2009b, 2009c).Moreover, recently published European research <strong>in</strong>dicates that British academicemployees are, by a large marg<strong>in</strong>, the least satisfied <strong>in</strong> Europe <strong>and</strong> themost likely to regret their choice <strong>of</strong> career (Hohle & Teichler, <strong>in</strong> press). Severalstudies conducted <strong>in</strong> the <strong>higher</strong> education sector have associated work-related<strong>stress</strong> with low levels <strong>of</strong> job satisfaction (e.g. K<strong>in</strong>man, 1998; McClenahan, Giles& Mallet, 2007; Byrne et al., 2012). Reflect<strong>in</strong>g these f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>gs, the Europeanstudy also reported that 61% <strong>of</strong> senior academics <strong>and</strong> 56% <strong>of</strong> junior academicsfrom the UK described their job as ‘a considerable source <strong>of</strong> stra<strong>in</strong>’.Several factors are likely to have contributed towards the poor work-related <strong>well</strong><strong>be<strong>in</strong>g</strong><strong>of</strong> <strong>UCU</strong> members. Post-compulsory education <strong>in</strong> the UK has undergone aperiod <strong>of</strong> considerable change that has challenged the resources <strong>of</strong>organisations <strong>and</strong> employees. The nature <strong>of</strong> academic <strong>and</strong> academic-relatedroles has changed considerably <strong>and</strong> dem<strong>and</strong>s have <strong>in</strong>creased substantially.Student numbers have <strong>in</strong>creased more than 2.5-fold over the last 20 years, <strong>and</strong>a more diverse student population hold<strong>in</strong>g an <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gly ‘consumer oriented’approach to their studies has been documented (CHERI, 2007; 2011). The<strong>in</strong>troduction <strong>of</strong> student fees has led to a reassessment <strong>of</strong> ‘value for money’,<strong>and</strong> competition between universities <strong>and</strong> colleges for home <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>ternationalstudents has <strong>in</strong>creased. The <strong>in</strong>troduction <strong>of</strong> national <strong>and</strong> global rank<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>of</strong>5
![(.pdf) [29kb] - UCU](https://img.yumpu.com/50914942/1/184x260/pdf-29kb-ucu.jpg?quality=85)
Change language