IDENTIFYING OCCUPATIONAL STRESSORS AMONG UNORGANIZED SECTORS WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO STREET VENDORS IN BIHAR

INTRODUCTION

Occupational stress indicates the stress that is being experienced as a result of anyone’s profession. The workplace creates a longlasting impact on the life of any individual. If we talk about the unorganized sector, most unorganized workers are actually working day and night to earn bread and butter. One of the primary issues with work-related stress is that most individuals are unaware of it and wait until it worsens before seeking treatment. The stress that a person experiences as a direct result of their occupation is referred to as occupational stress or workplace stress. Work is the performance of duties requiring the expenditure of both mental and physical energy, with the goal of producing goods and services that meet the requirements of people. One could argue that the idea of stress is so complex that no one procedure or explanation can fully account for the occurrence. Stressors are pressures that are either psychological or physical that can lead to strain. The body’s process of adjusting to external influences, adjustments, demands, and pressures is known as stress. Occupational stress, or stress brought on by one’s workplace, is one of the most important health problems in the world. Due to assiduous and unpredictable stresses, stress and burnout have reached all-time highs in a variety of professions. Employers and employees are frantically trying to restore normalcy to the workplace. (Jacobs, 2024) An occupation is a job that one performs for a regular salary. Because of the requirements of the modern work environment, pressure at the job cannot be avoided. Occupational stress is a subject of growing concern that is constantly on the radar, which encourages ongoing research in this field. The increased concern that people have for their own and their loved ones’ health is most likely the source of this intense interest. In the current competitive, global environment, people must compete everywhere. On the other hand, the economy requires increased productivity, which is increased through resource exploitation, raising motivation levels, and lowering employee stress. The number of hours worked at each employment has greatly increased in the current economy. The workers’ bodies are at a high risk of musculoskeletal disorders because they must work for extended periods of time in awkward and static body postures. The shifts in the working environment and conditions have caused the workers to experience stress, which may be divided into two categories: occupational stress brought on by the job or work and physical stress, which manifests as fatigue and discomfort in the workers’ body parts. The current study found that physical exertion, a loss of family time, a risk of injury, discomfort from seasonal changes in working conditions, and tools were the five main causes of physical stress among unorganised sector workers. It may be stated that these five elements collectively account for the majority of the physical stress experienced by every employee. Employers may focus on these five elements to give employees better working circumstances. Employee stress levels might be frequently assessed, and counseling sessions could be planned for them to improve their physical and mental health. Counselors could also advise them that their productivity would increase, which would be advantageous to the firm (Devi, 2016). Understaffing, work overload (including overtime, shift work, and high patient turnover), working conditions, inadequate food breaks, work experience, workplace conflict, violence, gender discrimination, job insecurity, and job dissatisfaction were some of the factors significantly associated with occupational sexism. Other significant risk factors included working in rural or economically depressed areas with poor infrastructure and not being rewarded. Additional stressors brought on by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic include worker redeployment, a shortage of personal protective equipment, and the worry of contracting the disease (Joshi, 2022). According to epidemiological research, women who work in stressful occupations are more likely to experience melancholy, anxiety, musculoskeletal disorders, high blood pressure, alcoholism, smoking, physical inactivity, and obesity, among other negative health behaviors (Zhou, 2022). Many workers frequently experience work-related stress, which is brought on by a number of variables, including persistent overwork. (Flores, 2023) Academic staff showed a high prevalence of at least one burnout dimension (Amer, 2022). The pace of work has accelerated, and information overload has increased significantly over the last few decades due to the technological revolution. The modern labour market’s features, such as short-term contracts, new psychological agreements between employees and employers, and employability perceptions, put job security in jeopardy and are a neverending source of occupational stress and, in severe situations, burnout. An individual experiences occupational stress when they are unable to manage the stressors related to their work environment (Freitas, 2023). In many populations, the degree of work stress has been implicated as a cause of job burnout. (Wu, 2023). “Workplace” burnout is a syndrome associated with a certain occupation that arises from ongoing stress at work that is not well handled. Tools from science that have been verified can be used to measure and quantify burnout. (American Psychological Association, 2023) The current study revealed a number of variables that affect workplace stress levels. The key factors shown to increase stress levels are age, occupational type, time spent at work, the individual’s priority at their place of employment, transportation, money, job happiness, no break in work, etc. Additionally, this work demonstrates how negatively stress impacts both the mental and physical health of employees. However, stress may be reduced if the coworkers are friendly and the workplace atmosphere is positive. The management authority and the individuals may adopt some appropriate policies to lower the stress level. Stress could be decreased if the authorities listened to the employee’s problems and, if possible, brought them as close to their house as possible. Working from home frequently lowers stress. Making a policy to lessen occupational stress may include factors like fare selection, allowing vacations whenever a person feels exhausted, lowering transportation costs, counseling occasionally, job security, raising income, acknowledging work, making sure that tasks and responsibilities are understood clearly, reducing working hours, using proper shift schedules, organising training programs, and conducting appropriate medical surveillance. To lower stress levels, try meditation, yoga, regular exercise, music therapy, and living a balanced life (Gupta, 2020). The COVID-19 epidemic brought additional stressors to almost every area of life, from extended work hours to heightened responsibilities at home. These stressors have grown constant and unending as the world prepares for the third year of the pandemic, increasing everyone’s risk of burnout. Burnout can affect anybody exposed to long-term stressful situations, but first responders, educators, and human services workers are more vulnerable, particularly as the public continues to oppose COVID-19 preventative efforts (Abramson, 2022).