Written by: Neela Pirwitz, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Burnout is often tied to the context of chronic stress in paid labour. However, it is important to recognise that not every sort of labour is paid and that chronic stress can occur outside of the workplace too. Women perform the majority of unpaid labour, such as care work for children and relatives or taking care of the household. Focusing on paid labour when defining burnout can lead to under-recognising burnout and can have serious health implications for those affected.
When hearing about burnout we often immediately think of the workplace too. Most of us have heard of someone being affected by burnout, and some of us might have even suffered from it ourselves. Often, the cases of burnout we hear about are related to the workplace. We hear of chronic unmanaged stress, caused by a difficult relationship with a manager or co-worker, someone having to work too much overtime, or a non-existent work-life balance. The official definition of burnout by the ICD, which is used to diagnose burnout, states that burnout is exclusive to the workplace. While work-related stress can indeed be very difficult to manage and might be the most common cause of burnout, it is likely not the only possible origin. Limiting the existence of burnout to the workplace insinuates that paid labour has to be involved for someone to experience chronic, unmanaged stress and its consequences. However, there are many contexts beyond the workplace in which chronic stress can occur. Therefore, I would like to consider the possible causes of burnout and use the example of unpaid care work to show why limiting burnout to the workplace can be problematic.
Causes of burnout
Burnout can be caused by a multitude of factors, including:
lack of control: not having influence on workload or schedule
lack of support
lack of work-life balance: all energy goes towards work, so none is left for friends, family and self
having a high-pressure or chaotic work environment
lack of recognition
lack of boundaries
While these factors can occur in the workplace, they can also occur in family dynamics, such as unpaid care work.
Unpaid labour and burnout
Although workplace burnout is the most commonly known kind of burnout, and chronic stress often does occur in the workplace, its predisposition is that the affected person has a paid job that they can go to every day. However, receiving a salary and going to an office are not the only defining points of “work”. Different kinds of work can include managing the household, child care or caring for sick relatives. Whether this work is performed full-time or in addition to an office job, it is often unpaid. Therefore, it is considered unpaid labour. We now have to ask ourselves, is this type of work any less stressful just because it is unpaid? On the contrary, stress can quickly become chronic when caring for a small child or sick relative. Since these types of care work often require constant attention and involvement, there are no fixed working hours.
Consequently, it can be very difficult to set boundaries and carve out time for oneself,
which can easily lead to overwhelm and therefore burnout. Depending on the situation unpaid care work might even be more stressful than paid labour because additionally to the other stressors, payment is lacking. Not everyone who has to perform full-time care work can also rely on a steady income from, for example, a partner. Similarly, not everyone who has to perform unpaid labour can afford to not also perform paid labour.
Therefore, the pressure and resulting stress could increase, making it more likely for burnout to manifest.
Gender gap in unpaid labour and burnout
In our society, as it is now, women still take on most of the care work. A study showed, that women in Germany perform as much as 72 billion hours of unpaid care work per year. As a result, they might not be able to work a paid job full-time, or at all. Hence, their income is reduced and they are more likely to depend on other people or governmental aid. This, additionally to being constantly occupied with another person, not having time for oneself, and not having set working hours can all be major stressors, which can undoubtedly lead to burnout. To assume that burnout can only be caused by paid jobs is an oversimplification. If people who perform unpaid labour, and due to their overrepresentation in unpaid care work primarily women, are not diagnosed with burnout because of the specifics of a definition, they might not receive the help they need. This could lead to serious health implications like cardiovascular disease.
This comes to show, that definitions matter. While it is a very relevant step that burnout is now officially classified as a syndrome, we have to consider the effects of the definitions we use. Even though you or someone close to you might not be performing paid labour, it does not mean that you or they cannot be affected by unmanaged chronic stress and burnout. Accordingly, it is important to encourage people who are potentially suffering from burnout to seek help, even if they do not have a paid job. This can help prevent serious long-term health consequences.
Neela Pirwitz, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Neela Pirwitz, is a Jay Shetty certified burnout-prevention and well-being coach. She studied psychology and is now working for an international organization. Based in the Netherlands and coaching globally, she is working with professionals who want to become more efficient in how they work, create a better work-life balance, or restructure their routines and habits to prevent burnout. Neela’s mission is to help her clients to fit their work into their life, rather than life into their work.
