Employees in the EU are working harder and in more stressful conditions than ever before, according to a major new survey by the Dublin based European Foundation.
Although new, more flexible work practices are often heralded as making the workplace more attractive, the survey shows that 19 per cent of the 21,500 workers interviewed said the flexibility they are subject to actually conflicts with family and social commitments.
The report was compiled last year and is the third of its type. It shows a continuing decline in working conditions across the EU over the past decade. The previous surveys were conducted in 1990 and 1995. National breakdowns of figures will not be available for some weeks but Ireland is expected to reflect overall trends.
Mr Pascal Paoli, research manager at the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, was involved in all three surveys.
He says it had been assumed in the past that the switch from a predominantly industrial society to one where employment was mainly in the services and post-industrial sectors would lead to a natural improvement in working conditions.
However, this was not happening, he said, and some of the extra stresses were caused by efforts to improve conditions, such as the shortening of the working week. "We have to reintroduce the quality of working conditions onto the political agenda. Governments are beginning at EU level to address the quality as well as the quantity of jobs being produced."
Besides a shorter working week, he identified reductions in staffing levels, reorientation of work practices around customer or client needs, and new forms of work organisation as the main factors in deteriorating conditions.
More flexible working was not in itself good, or bad, but lack of predictability in rosters or workloads were causing serious problems - "especially for women, who often have a double workload in the home".
The survey covers 1,500 workers in each EU member-state except Luxembourg, where only 500 workers were interviewed. The survey found that, in general, workers believed their health and safety are less at risk now than previously.
But the survey found the incidence of physical complaints has risen or remained constant. For instance, 33 per cent of respondents suffered from backache (30 per cent in 1995); 23 per cent suffered from overall fatigue (20 per cent in 1995) and 28 per cent suffered from stress (the same as in 1995).
The proportion of workers exposed to physical hazards is slowly rising. Some 29 per cent were exposed to intense noise (27 per cent in 1990 and 28 per cent in 1995); 47 per cent to painful and/or tiring positions at work (43 per cent in 1990 and 45 per cent in 1995), and 37 per cent were required to handle heavy loads (31 per cent in 1990 and 33 per cent in 1995).
The incidence of repetitive work remains widespread at 57 per cent in 2000, the same proportion as 1995, while intensity of work has increased. Some 56 per cent of interviewees said they worked at high speed in 2000, compared with 48 per cent in 1990 and 54 per cent in 1995.
Women still tend to be lower paid than men. This may be linked to the emerging trend since 1995 of a link between the growth in temporary work and fixed-term contracts, and poor working conditions.