Job stress in the pink collar ghetto : clerical workers in the telecommunications industry

Abstract

This study examines, from a feminist perspective, workplace restructuring and the resulting changes to clerical work that affect women workers in the form of job stress. Five clerical workers were interviewed using a semi-structured interviewing method. All participants experienced job stress, and they cited heavy workloads in the context of intensified work in a telecommunications company as the most pressing workplace issue that contributed to their job stress.

Employers are currently introducing workplace changes such as downsizing, outsourcing and contracting out clerical functions. They are introducing new forms of office technology and changing the work processes in the office. Sources of job stress include work overload, increased pace of work, more complex and technical tasks, longer work hours, little opportunity for advancement, work intensification, heavy monitoring and supervision, lack of control over work and exclusion from decision-making. I conclude with strategies to reduce the workplace stress for clerical workers.