Is Work Pressure Becoming Too Much Lately?

Taro Milk Tea on 31/08/2022 - 10:27
Last edited 31/08/2022 - 12:32 by 1 other user

Reading this article today, and it ripped my heart.

I once also work in a company where it put so much pressures to the employees in terms of deadline, management's expectations and unfair treatments. It became too much for me that it impacted my mental health, which made me resign within 6 months.

Such a shame that these days, people actually live to work rather than work to live. More pressures now added because of many factors: inflation, COVID and etc.

Unfortunately, this is probably not the first time we hear this kind of news, but this needs to be taken seriously. Mental health is not a joke, big companies need to stop being too greedy about their numbers and start paying more attention to its employees wellbeing.

What do you guys think about this situation? What needs to be done to prevent this to happen again?

Education & Work

Comments

  • p1 ama on 31/08/2022 - 14:11
    +10

    At the end of the day, you need to vote with your feet and stick up for yourself. The number of people I know who complain on a daily basis about their jobs / work do nothing to remedy their own lives astounds me. I can't even begin to count the number of times I've heard the whole "I'm so sick of it, I'm going to quit my job", just to find out they've not applied for a single job several weeks later.

    Much of this comes from (at least IMO) a fear of failure, and a bias against being action oriented, and (at least IMO) is what happens when so many people have never experienced failure before. I still remember when I learned to fail and found out that none of this matters and it's never worth it to sacrifice your happiness (let alone your life) for "work", which never meant anything in the first place. Speak up, take risks, the worst thing that can happen to you is getting fired, having to find a new job, switching careers. Life goes on.

    Find meaning and happiness in your life, whether that be your family, travel, hobbies you're passionate about and stop trying to seek validation from people who don't give a shit about you, whether that be your manager or your fourth cousin who drives a Porsche and carries an LV bag.

  • Caped Baldy on 31/08/2022 - 14:39
    +5

    My work is stacking it on. Everyone I've spoken to is pretty unhappy.

    Management justifies their shitty behaviour by having staff go on wellbeing training. It's not going to do much if people are doing 50hr weeks. Anyway, they also decided to not have the staff survey this year. Staff are leaving in droves and quite a number without jobs lined up.

    • Taro Milk Tea on 31/08/2022 - 15:23
      +1

      Sounds like a terrible place to work

  • GG57 on 31/08/2022 - 15:13
    +1

    The complete absence of any self-employed people in these comments

  • Donaldhump on 31/08/2022 - 15:20
    +6

    get a job that pays by the hour

    • Taro Milk Tea on 31/08/2022 - 15:23
      +7

      all jobs are technically paid by the hour.

      • Donaldhump on 31/08/2022 - 15:26
        +1

        they are not paid by the hour as whether they work 8 hours, 12 hours, 16 hours a day they are being paid for 8
        so the hourly rate reduces if they are not paid overtime and "expected to work"

        so put it this way

        that worker above working 60 hours a week but paid for the 38
        or
        me paid by the hour, would bill for 60 hours and get paid for it, not that I would work 60 hours, 50 hours or 40 hours a week anyway, unless its one offs here and there

        • Taro Milk Tea on 31/08/2022 - 15:41

          Exactly, the issue here is not find the job to pay you by the hour, all jobs are paid by hour.

          Auditors, unfortunately, not paid based on hour but based on outcomes. Which is a bit ironic, because they charge the client based on the hours they spent to complete the work.

          What you are suggesting is to work as a casual instead of fulltimer/part timer. But working as casual will not make you entitled to get leaves.

          • Donaldhump on 31/08/2022 - 15:52

            @Taro Milk Tea: lookup the difference between a salaried employee and a waged employee

            you want a job where you are on a wage, thus get overtime, not expected to work for free, or if salaried not "expected" to work 50 hours every week, here and there is ok but time off later should be returned. no one works for free in this world if they don't want to (excluding prisoners etc)

            or become a contractor, the lack of annual leave etc is easily covered by the 40% extra money you get

            • Windows7forever on 01/09/2022 - 07:54

              @Donaldhump: Casual employment ftw!

            • mrfuku on 02/09/2022 - 17:29

              @Donaldhump: Performance based renumeration is a good motivator.

              My current role pay is 100% performance based, and it keeps you accountable to yourself
              (obviously some factors in your performance can be out of your control)

        • Daabido on 03/09/2022 - 09:28

          Get paid for 8 hours? Luxury. I get paid for 5 and work about 10 hours a day.

          • Donaldhump on 03/09/2022 - 14:05

            @Daabido: right well then maybe you need to find a better job

      • cnrmlj on 02/09/2022 - 15:42

        No they aren't. I have a full time job where i am contracted to work 40 hours per week and additional time required to get the job done. If i work on Saturday for a system release i will probably get a day off in lieu. Extra hours during the week are not paid. The first couple of years i was on hourly rate and recorded hours and got paid overtime. After a couple of promotions i was moved to the basis i am currently on. Been like that for about 30 years.

  • iridiumstem on 31/08/2022 - 15:50

    I think it's one thing to say a workplace cares about mental health and completely different for them to actually act on those empty words.
    Whether some of the workplace can actually act on those is another, completely question I feel.

  • Ghost47 on 31/08/2022 - 18:21
    +4

    It’s a sad situation but CEOs need to pay off their multimillion dollar mansions somehow, so they won’t hire staff and will just work their current staff to the bone.

    Let’s face it, people are expendable in business.

    • SlavOz on 01/09/2022 - 12:14
      -1

      CEOs have a higher churn rate than most jobs. They get fired and replaced every couple of years.

      The rules are the same for everyone. If you can't do your job, they'll find someone who can. Businesses are not charities.

      Would you want a doctor with a history of mental issues performing your surgery? I sure wouldn't. I'd be more comfortable knowing he was driven out so a better doctor in the right frame of mind could come in.

      • Mr Haj on 01/09/2022 - 15:36
        +3

        They get fired and replaced every couple of years.

        They get crazy severance packages for being bad at their job.

    • Griffindinho on 01/09/2022 - 15:18

      Let’s face it, people are exploitable under capitalism

      FTFY.

  • SlavOz on 31/08/2022 - 20:03
    +2

    Not sure why everyone is assuming work caused her suicide. The article even clearly mentions there is no suggestion of this being the case (granted that's a legal disclaimer but still).

    It seems pretty simple minded and ignorant to think someone will be driven to suicide because they don't like their job. There's usually much deeper problems going on that you never see.

    Nobody likes their job. 100 years ago, before the dawn of workplaces, people's jobs was to die in war or work in extremely dangerous conditions for peanuts, yet suicide was never an issue.

    Suicide only became an issue after society stated ignoring its roots and trying to pave a new way of living.

    • 01001101 01000010 on 31/08/2022 - 20:28

      Suicide only became an issue after society stated ignoring its roots and trying to pave a new way of living.

      Depends at what point you think the new way of living started..

      From memory, Socrates commited suicide by hemlock, there are half a dozen mentions in the bible, pretty sure there were instances in Lithuania during the middle ages and that's without mentioning Japan…

    • p1 ama on 31/08/2022 - 22:40
      +3

      Nobody likes their job. 100 years ago, before the dawn of workplaces, people's jobs was to die in war or work in extremely dangerous conditions for peanuts, yet suicide was never an issue.

      Did you actually do any research or just pulling "evidence" out of thin air?

      100 years ago, suicide rates were actually higher than they are today, at least in Australia: https://www.aihw.gov.au/suicide-self-harm-monitoring/data/de…

      I've not come across any worldwide data over the same time period, but here is one from the 1960s until now (so 50 years back): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_in_the_United_States#/… - again suicides look like they are flat or decreasing, definitely not increasing.

      It's almost as if improvements in standard of living, and people not having to work in extremely dangerous conditions or going to war (or whatever else you're saying) is leading to less people committing suicide. Fascinating, right?

      • SlavOz on 01/09/2022 - 09:51
        -3

        lol, imagine thinking that suicide was an issue in the 1900s 🤣

        I mean sure people committed suicide all throughout time, but come on dude. Perhaps 100 years was a bad time frame, but the point is, life has only gotten better over time and suicide rates have only continued to rise.

        • p1 ama on 01/09/2022 - 11:31
          +3

          I mean sure people committed suicide all throughout time, but come on dude. Perhaps 100 years was a bad time frame, but the point is, life has only gotten better over time and suicide rates have only continued to rise.

          How have they continued to rise? Suicide rates are trending downwards, you're living in an alternate reality 🤣

          • SlavOz on 01/09/2022 - 12:06

            @p1 ama: Over the last decade, the age-standardised suicide rate for males increased from 16.2 deaths per 100,000 population in 2011 to 18.6 in 2020. Female rates also increased from 5.1 deaths per 100,000 population in 2011 to 5.8 in 2020.

            Although the data fluctuates heavily, there have been more increases than decreases over the last century.

            • p1 ama on 01/09/2022 - 12:30
              +1

              @SlavOz:

              Although the data fluctuates heavily, there have been more increases than decreases over the last century.

              Wait, you're using data points over the last decade, and then talking about the last century? I don't deny that you can cherry pick to years to potentially show whether suicides have increased or decreased, however, the overall trend is downwards. I get that doesn't suit your narrative though.

        • cheapo123 on 02/09/2022 - 11:29

          rates of declined, media coverage has dramatically increased.

      • Randolph Duke on 01/09/2022 - 10:55
        +3

        I’ll give it to our Slavic friend, despite consistently been proven wrong on multiple topics with factual information, he keeps on trucking.

        A true feelings > facts person

    • Sxio on 01/09/2022 - 18:17
      +1

      You don't think ppl committed suicide 100yrs ago? Srsly?

      Wow you are DENSE!

    • AustriaBargain on 02/09/2022 - 00:16
      +1

      I think a lot of people like their jobs. Getting paid to hang out with people you consider friends, all equally lazy and cruisy in their work style. Or getting paid a lot just to listen to people talk. Repairing deep fat fryers if you have an autistic obsession with different models of deep fat fryer. Plenty of people enjoy what they do and if we lived in a world without money and everyone's needs were met by robots, some of them would probably keep doing the same job anyway.

      And plenty of people hate their jobs, or are bullied by their bosses who fixate not hem for all kinds of human condition reasons. It's not hard at all to believe a psychopathic boss could drive an employee to suicide. 1% of all people are bonafide psychopaths, or whatever, so 1% of all bosses will be too. Probably more than that because psychopaths are drawn to positions of power. I wouldn't be surprised if work is a deciding factor in thousands of suicides every year in Australia.

  • bobolo on 31/08/2022 - 23:16
    -6

    As an employer, the contracts I give to my employees (that they agree to) state 9 - 5pm with the occasional expecation to work beyond these hours where necessary (work events, odd Saturday morning) etc.

    My employees are renumerated so that if they work longer hours than expected, they are compensated financially for it.

    Those who put in more hours get paid more - simple as that. Those that don't, still complete their job as a bare minimum expecation, but they don't get paid as much

    If you are the type of person that doesn't value more $$$, no probs. If you are the type of person that does and is willing to compromise time for it, no probs either

    Its not hard, and doesn't require a "social movement"

    • Taro Milk Tea on 31/08/2022 - 23:28

      Those who put in more hours get paid more - simple as that

      This is the issue of most of the employers here, not everything can be measured by $. Yes, getting paid more means more responsibilities and, in some way, you have to work harder because of the added responsibilities.

      But that work harder does not mean work longer.

      Earning more $ does not mean you can avoid taking care the mental health of your employees, which can never be measured by $.

      The contract you provided not only working one way, you as employer are also binded by it to ensure the working environment you provide supports the wealth being of your staffs - which unfortunately, most of the time it's neglected.

      • p1 ama on 31/08/2022 - 23:54

        Earning more $ does not mean you can avoid taking care the mental health of your employees, which can never be measured by $.

        I agree and disagree with this - as much as a workplace can provide a good environment, mental health is ultimately the responsibility of the individual. It is up to the individual to recognise that they have an issue, it is up to the individual to seek medical care from professionals, and it is up to the individual to remove themselves from a workplace if they find that it is harmful.

        There is a huge spectrum of factors which lead to mental health issues, many of which have nothing to do with the workplace at all.

        That being said, I completely agree that workplaces should not be sweatshops where people are worked to the absolute bone, but if that were the case, people have agency, they can choose to work somewhere else.

      • bobolo on 01/09/2022 - 09:08
        -2

        This is the issue with you "quiet quitters". You simply don't stop complaining.

        You claim to not have to/want to do more than what you are obliged to, and that you are there primarily to satisfy your financial needs in order to "live" outside of work.

        Here I am providing that exact environment for my employees with no judgement whatsoever, but those who "choose" to work longer/harder, get compensated more for it.

        Where does mental health even come into the argument? If you cannot meet the bare minimum requirements for work as an employee, why did you even sign up to do the job in the first place?

        • Sxio on 01/09/2022 - 18:20
          +1

          This is really disappointing to be honest. For someone in charge of creating the environment, you clearly have no understanding of how that can affect employee well being and mental health. You're creating this silly 'us and them' and 'me and you' argument that just doesn't exist.

    • Poor Ass on 01/09/2022 - 00:44
      +1

      What industry you work in?

    • hasher22 on 01/09/2022 - 01:14

      I assume those contracts are wage? Cause all the contracts for salary I've seen for myself, friends, family members, any OT will be compensated by time in lieu. I rather be paid financially than TOIL.

  • BeoWulf on 01/09/2022 - 00:25
    +1

    Work and life don't balance especially if you have a desk job.

    • SlavOz on 01/09/2022 - 09:59

      You're doing something wrong.

      With the flexibility offered by WFH, it's very easy to have a work life balance today. I'm in a high stakes job in a very busy industry but I work from my bedroom most days. On the days in the office, there are coffee machines, free snacks, a gym, breakout areas, showers, and even a mini game room to unwind. In fact, I started to develop extra hobbies when I started working, compared to when I was unemployed.

      Sounds like you just loathe your job. I used to be like this. It's not healthy. I eventually found something I'm good at and now I love it.

      • CharityCase on 01/09/2022 - 16:56
        +3

        how did you go from being unemployed to high stakes job in a very busy industry?

        • SlavOz on 01/09/2022 - 18:03

          I got offered a job.

        • Korban Dallas on 02/09/2022 - 23:11
          +1

          Does not compute

    • Fobsessive on 01/09/2022 - 19:34

      Yeah it's literally busy season in aud*t right now

  • Blargman2001 on 01/09/2022 - 01:19

    I've heard with some of these firms, the deal they offer is this: give us your life for the first 10 years of your career and then we'll pay you a crap tonne of money once you make it through the ranks. I feel some people get a little seduced by the promise of huge pay packets and a corner office and try to stick it out when their mental health is suffering.

    • greatlamp on 01/09/2022 - 08:22
      +3

      But it's a pyramid hierarchy. Only a handful of employees will be able to reach the end of the 10 years by design.

      It's a bit different when you can say the hard work will definitely be rewarded when you have completed all the training years.

    • Drakesy on 01/09/2022 - 09:24
      +2

      Thr funny thing is the money isnt even that good. Yes its ok say in the order of $150-180k by the time you get to 10 years but you've also given up 10 years of 50-60 hour weeks and now that youre a partner you need to continue to do that to maintain or improve that number.

      Government pays this in certain roles with less hours and better work life balance

      • Blargman2001 on 01/09/2022 - 18:18
        +2

        I think some people couldn't forgive themselves if they worked for the government. Instead they pick a big 4 job that destroys their soul in a different way.

        • Drakesy on 01/09/2022 - 18:22
          +2

          That was my mindset when i was in consulting
          But after seeing how terrible government workers were and how they were getting paid significantly more than me in consulting i went F$@k it and jumped ship

          Best decision ever

  • Kooratz on 01/09/2022 - 05:53
    +7

    Earn less stress less, enjoy your limited life every day and be happy. Soon we all be dead and money don't matter much.

    • Taro Milk Tea on 01/09/2022 - 10:09

      Earn less stress less

      Unfortunately these graduates/junior in big 4 firms will not believe in this statement.

    • Drakesy on 01/09/2022 - 18:23
      +1

      Earn Less Stress More if you're a Big4 Grad :)

  • 2esc on 01/09/2022 - 08:47
    +1

    Pressures at work can be immense but we dont know all the facts was work a contributing factor to the suicide yes it occurred at a work venue but suicides can occur anywhere.

    Pressures are coming from all directions now depending on your job not just performance expectations, but epa, worksafe, legislation requirements public perceptions etc all valid but dont tick one box or something and you can be hung out to dry.

  • Aneurism on 01/09/2022 - 09:19
    +2

    In other parts of the world people are starving, living in poverty, lacking decent water resources or living in an environment where missiles and bombs are going off, or countries seeking to or attempting to annex their home land.

    Sometimes it helps to grow one's perspective to see context beyond the local environment to understand that perhaps there are bigger problems in the world than extra hours at work or meeting deadlines.

    That being said. where a work environment has designated unrealistic deadlines, then staff should find an alternative workplace. (If one is competent, one should be able to do this)

    On the other hand, if the deadlines can be met through competence, skill and perseverance then it may just be Darwinian selection doing its' thing.

    • Daz91 on 01/09/2022 - 11:24
      +1

      So true. I used to do work trips to Jakarta and some of the stuff I saw there made me very jaded about how people complain about their lives in first world countries.

  • bobolo on 01/09/2022 - 10:16
    -2

    It's not a shame, it's just you.

    It's up to the individual whether they value work or not - whether than can handle stress or not.

    Many hate not working all the time…some people enjoy stress and pressure

    Clearly its not for you, which is why you quit. Nothing wrong with that - why complain to the world about it? Plenty of less stressful, cruisy jobs for you to work in especially in Australia in this environment.

  • Starlight8 on 01/09/2022 - 10:21

    Reading the article doesn't surprise me. Sadly there are lots of unbilled hours being an Accountant (embedded in the culture).

    The higher up you are, the more hours you work. Especially with emails coming left and right on your personal mobile. No break whatsoever!

    There should be more work life balance and pay increases. Sadly no union will fight or speak up for us Accountants…

    • Taro Milk Tea on 01/09/2022 - 10:23

      Especially with emails coming left and right on your personal mobile.

      That's why I never connect my work email or messenger to my mobile. Some people are just way too dedicated to their workplace.

      • Homr on 01/09/2022 - 10:40

        I connect my work email to my mobile but I turn notifications off. I check my email whenever I want and when I have free time

        • Taro Milk Tea on 01/09/2022 - 10:44

          but why? Once you check it and you see an email, for example that you did something wrong and you need to fix it quickly if you can, will it not bother you? Will it not make you login and do a bit of work?

          • Homr on 01/09/2022 - 10:46
            +1

            @Taro Milk Tea: Cos I have free time. It also gives me a chance to delete the crappy emails so when I do get to my desk my inbox is nice and organised and I can quickly see what things need attended to.

      • Starlight8 on 01/09/2022 - 11:03

        sadly work wont provide another mobile phone. Also if work did, i'd hate to be carrying another one around :( no win!

  • Homr on 01/09/2022 - 10:48

    OP, did your company allow you to WFH?

    • Taro Milk Tea on 01/09/2022 - 10:51

      The one that I resigned within 6 monhts? Nah..that was long time ago where WFH was such a rarity

      • Homr on 01/09/2022 - 10:57

        yeh, on that sucks. No WFH sucks big time

  • Daz91 on 01/09/2022 - 11:22
    -1

    Any time you think your job is too hard just think about shipbreakers in Chittagong with no PPE getting crushed, poisoned, and maimed while their vision and hearing is gradually destroyed for $3 a day.

    • mskeggs on 02/09/2022 - 08:00

      Nothing wrong with hoping to improve things for all of us.

    • Daabido on 03/09/2022 - 09:32

      I prefer to think of starving kittens, but each to their own.

  • Randolph Duke on 01/09/2022 - 12:06
    +7

    Appears to me a number of “get on with it people” have not been in a position where stress and burnout are a real thing. It’s not matter of “sucking it up” - it catches up with you eventually.

    • Aneurism on 03/09/2022 - 08:34
      +1

      I have seen people that are stressed because their competence levels and skill were at a capacity so low as compared to their peers such that everything became a mountainous task.

      Burnout is usually for the coworker who carries their load, but they can usually find a job elsewhere if needed.

      Incompetence and complacency will also catch up with you eventually too. Unions have made it quite hard to fire incompetent workers who remain so even after training.

      Sadly the ones who are incompetent tend to be oblivious to it

      • Randolph Duke on 04/09/2022 - 13:40

        Yes, well done on the thinly veiled insinuation I’m incompetent. That must be it.

        • Aneurism on 10/09/2022 - 20:35

          From my view, stress at work is an accumulation of multiple factors. Most times it can come from poor management, poor implementation and unrealistic targets which tend to be pushed top down.

          However, it is true that stress can be amplified in those who do not have the right skills to match their position in their jobs, thereby making them incompetent.

          I was just pointing out a factor that seemed to have been overlooked. I cannot help if you choose to take that factor and self-implicate after your own internal reflection of your abilities.

  • star-ggg on 01/09/2022 - 14:14

    Certain industries have a culture of work takes priority over health (physical and mental) as the norm. If you don't want this then don't go into these industries.

  • RefusdClassification on 01/09/2022 - 14:44
    -2

    If work pressure is bothering you, quit your private sector job and become a unionized public employee. Set for life.

    I don't understand why anyone would want to work a private sector job when there are millions of government positions.

    • Mr Haj on 01/09/2022 - 15:47
      +3

      I work in local government and find the work soul destroying. But yeah at least I get to knock off at 5 every day :)

      • Drakesy on 04/09/2022 - 02:16

        Lifetsyle trumps the reusme building bs that consulting tries to suck you in with

  • Mumbles on 01/09/2022 - 14:55

    What do you guys think about this situation? What needs to be done to prevent this to happen again?

    From an individual's stand point you can value your mental health and work out your personal needs and minimum living standard. Long term is to find an industry that you enjoy and find rewarding. A quote from Mark Twain, "Find a job you enjoy doing and you will never have to work a day in your life".

    Collectively you'll have to protest together. That means strengthening unions as they tend to represent employee interests instead of businesses. Share your values and ideas (like what you are doing on OzBargain).

    The "Great Resignation" and "Lying flat" movements are a real thing. There are significant numbers of people who have decided to quit jobs without having new jobs to move onto. Its quite drastic but it can be done with a bit of thought and planning.

    In Australia there's also large numbers of people who start their own small businesses (sole trader). If you find it unfair as an employee to be passes on a lot of the stresses then why not be an owner and handle the business directly but feel some personal freedoms.

  • Willy Beamish on 01/09/2022 - 15:40

    I dunno about pressure.
    But having to deal with people that have had their lives destroyed by floods as well as dealing with absolute scum scammers makes the day quite stressful..

  • jaffar on 01/09/2022 - 16:18

    Very sad. Perhaps not directly related but I stumbled upon an interesting article a few months ago. It's about a social phenomenon happening in China with some of the younger generation deciding to 'lie flat'. Probably applicable to many Asian countries where the work life balance is often very bad and the stress starts at school. All round sad situation.

    • CharityCase on 01/09/2022 - 17:02

      It's reasonable to lay flat when the companies there force work hours like 996 (9am-9pm 6 days a week), this destroys human physically and mentally

      • jaffar on 01/09/2022 - 21:29

        I've heard about that, 72 hours sounds insane! Yep, not just lying flat, seeking out jobs that are viewed as a shit by Asian parents, e.g. running a convenience or food stall.

  • Assburg on 01/09/2022 - 17:41

    The problem is the employees who aren't necessarily the best or brightest, or most reasonable, but make up for their lack of personal satisfaction in life by being a workaholic, and consequently normalising overtime.

    Look at those companies or gov depts, or even hospitals where the expectation is you'll work 50-60 hours a week. Instead of employing a resonable amount of people, those with no sense of justice do the very much expected and planned overtime at the expense of those who would like to honour the tradition of the 37.5 hour work week.

    • aboogee on 01/09/2022 - 22:41

      my experience in a gov dept is people come in at 10 and leave at 3
      thats includes the 1.5hr lunch break

      • Assburg on 02/09/2022 - 03:09

        Sadly true for many but, there are a few exceptions at the other end of the scale that leave people looking for jobs like that and feeling entitled to it after a few years of silly hard work.

  • helpme on 01/09/2022 - 18:26

    Meh, it sounds like there are other options out there. Let people choose what they want to do. Some people prefer the high stress, high prestige environment. Yes they may get caught up in million dollar homes and Mercedes but maybe that's success to them?

    It's better than them running off to WFH in rural Australia causing gentrification and making local communities suffer as we're seeing now. That way, in each area, everyone can afford to live with their salaries in the area they work. I doubt it, but I hope WFH dies.

    • mskeggs on 02/09/2022 - 08:05
      +3

      As somebody who moved like this 20 years ago, the extra property prices won’t last, there is plenty more land, but the income well paid WFH people bring to town is good for everyone.
      Add the chance for you kids to secure good incomes without having to leave town and it is a big win.

      • helpme on 02/09/2022 - 12:41

        Not really when people can't find rental properties or the prices have literally doubled while their incomes haven't. The chance for the kids to secure good incomes is also highly dependent on the education and environment those children are raised in. If they're struggling to have a stable home while they're young and there aren't enough teachers out there, chances are they won't get a WFH job anyways.

        • mskeggs on 02/09/2022 - 13:05

          I understand and sympathise. But the issue is the pace of change - lots of cashed up people competing for a limited resource at once, not the underlying change.
          Most country places have been trying to attract tree changers for years, with precisely the hope of adding to the regional economy to develop better jobs and more attractive towns. I agree the rental accommodation problem is a shocker, but as more housing is built totake the heat out of the prices, it will be better overall.
          Once somebody has been there for a few years, it isn't your town any more, it is our town, and they will be as keen as you to make sure the local schools are of good quality, the hospital is well funded, the locals can all find housing and the whole place is a great place to live.

          • helpme on 02/09/2022 - 16:43

            @mskeggs: Yet tree changers actually cause there to be less trees. City living is the most environmentally friendly as we can pack more people into less space and hence, things run more efficiently. We shouldn't be trying to attract them but discourage them.

  • aboogee on 01/09/2022 - 22:45
    +3

    If you cant handle then quit -
    Dont say you cant - no ones holding a gun against you forcing you not to quit

    But you cant have the best of both worlds where you want a luxurious life and not wanting the stress at work
    its a package, high pay high stress

  • m-chan on 02/09/2022 - 00:58
    +6

    Advice from EAP psychologist a couple of days ago:
    * You’re not working OT so stop calling it that, you’re voluntarily working for free when all that time can be spent doing something you enjoy & value.
    It really put things in perspective - I’m getting paid way less than what I thought I was getting paid, for all the additional hours I’ve worked, and at the expense of my mental health & well-being deteriorating (comes & goes depending on how busy it’s been). Burn-out is real, sitting in front of the computer all day every day forgetting to take breaks, trying to ‘catch-up’ on a never-ending steam of incoming work with deadlines to meet left right & centre, and everything is always ‘urgent’. The pressure & anxiety can build up when it gets super busy, and can mentally cripple you when you’re pushed to the edge (doing too many tasks at once, switching/multi-tasking). After working like this for >10 years one starts to wonder what the whole point of working so much is, especially if you don’t feel like you have the energy or time to enjoy life & leisure ‘after’ work :(
    So I either need to learn how to set really strong boundaries (ignoring those ‘urgent’ requests during my lunch hour, finishing at 5pm on the dot, and let that work pile up & annoy my team members for not getting things done as quickly as expected - easier said than done of course, since everyone else is working 24/7) or be brave & join the great resignation against the ‘system’.

  • Chong on 02/09/2022 - 09:14
    +2

    People need to stop overplaying how great the grind is. I think its ok for a few who are gunning for promotions to put in extra work. Another to expect all the employees to work like those few who dream of high power management.

    Reality is 99% of people wont reach that level nor aspire to, most people just want to pay the bills and enjoy time with the family, doing what they enjoy, but the media tells us we need to all hustle. In reality, we need to work out what would make us happy, quite often the effort isn't working for other people, for some its a cause, for others is spending time on your hobby, for most is spending time with close family and friends.

    • bobolo on 02/09/2022 - 12:05

      The "grind" relates more to someone who owns their own business or some kind of side hustle. Or perhaps working hard at your 9 - 5 and save/invest enough so that you can become financially free.

      Again, nobody is forcing people to work hard or work longer than they need to. If you cannot make that distinction yourself as a grown adult, and are that easily forced to spend most of your life doing something you don't want to do - be it through media or other external influences - then there are bigger underlying personal problems you should be attending to

      Plenty of mediocre and stress free jobs out there - just don't expect big bucks and the instagram lifestyle in doing so

      • Chong on 02/09/2022 - 15:54
        +1

        exactly but the media bombards the young ones with all these unrealistic expectations… plenty of jobs that would allow you a decent life as long as you spend sensibly and invest safely.

        e.g. one of the simplest ways to invest is in super is to top up super as much as you can within the concessional contributions cap, and keep an eye on your super, but most dont.

  • pogichinoy on 02/09/2022 - 10:56
    +1

    Vote with your feet.

    The grind isn't for everyone.

  • stuffisok on 02/09/2022 - 12:03
    +1

    Mental health is just as important as physical health. Under WHS law, hazards associated with mental health (psychosocial hazards, e.g. overwork, low job control) are treated the same as physical hazards and risks. As employers have a duty to manage WHS risk, they will be liable if injury occurs as a result of psychosocial hazards. On average, 7,984 Australians are compensated for work related mental health conditions each year.

    It is best for employers to do some risk management to identify, assess, and control all their psychosocial hazards in consultation with staff. The controls should usually come in the form of health and wellbeing programs, safe systems of work (fatigue management standards, etc.), training (e.g about EAPs), etc.

    Building/improving the health and safety culture and having health and safety representative / committees would probably help facilitate these improvements. Though in the end, to really get some traction, top down support is necessary.

  • zCrimson on 02/09/2022 - 16:49

    After a point you'll lose more money to tax. I work for 20-25hr per week and if I work more say up to 40+hr I only get 33-50% more money in my pocket for the base 22hr-ish (half pay for double the hours). People today are working more then any time in history, and your effort keeps getting you less and less. Best thing to do is reduce costs and live a simpler life, also don't work yourself to death for others, stop being other peoples ATM's/slaves. Fun fact woman spead 80%-ish of all money earned.

    • greatlamp on 04/09/2022 - 00:46

      Fun fact woman spead 80%-ish of all money earned.

      What do you think that means?
      Women run the household, so in a household they spend more money.

      Women also work less hours than men on average for similar reasons

      • zCrimson on 04/09/2022 - 08:53

        Not these days they don't, not to the degree decades ago. Main point was guys are getting work pressure for things they don't need to do anymore. Loads of things are adding to stress atleast to men in the work place and the workzone is where they will more eaily come to ahead. Also many of these pressures are self inflicted for both men and women.

        • greatlamp on 04/09/2022 - 09:35
          +1

          I don't disagree with your points, but your interpretation of that statistic is incorrect.

          Not these days they don't, not to the degree decades ago.

          That's exactly what the statistic you quoted disproves.

          Women aren't paid less than men for the same work, but a greater proportion of women are taking lower positions than they are capable of, working less hours, and taking less steps to climb the career ladder - by choice - because the majority of child raising is still done by women.

          If we want this to change we need to make it acceptable for anyone - man or woman - to be able to work flexibility, tend to their family, and still have a career. The fact that it isn't possible at the moment means families must choose who gets to raise the children, and who must focus on work.

          Solve toxic workplaces and the gender disparity disappears.

  • canberrascooter on 02/09/2022 - 17:24
    +1

    Get a high pressure job, can't handle the pressure…

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