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Are Quebecers More Stressed Out at Work than Others? An Investigation into the Differences between Quebec and the Rest of Canada in the Level of Work Stress

Author

Listed:
  • Golnaz Sedigh

    (Department of Economics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON)

  • Rose Anne Devlin

    (Department of Economics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON)

  • Gilles Grenier

    (Department of Economics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON)

Abstract
Stress at work is costly to individuals as well as employers, causing productivity to suffer and worker compensation claims to increase. Irrespective of how the data are grouped, individuals in Quebec are much more likely to report high work stress relative to those in any other Canadian province. Here we explore why this might be the case. Using pooled cross-sectional data from eight cycles of the Canadian Community Health Survey, spanning 2003-2012, we show that several factors are related to work stress, including chronic diseases, mental health, and lifestyle choices like smoking and drinking. Nevertheless, living in Quebec is persistently associated with higher reported work stress. We discuss whether contextual factors, like Quebec’s child-care policy and its legal regime may help us understand this result better; a ‘cultural’ explanation is explored, as is the possibility that Quebecers simply report more stress. While residents of Quebec do not appear to differ from others with respect to the prevalence of some ‘stress-related’ health conditions – pointing to a cultural component to the explanation – they are absent from work more often than others, suggesting that the costs to Quebec of this phenomenon are real.

Suggested Citation

  • Golnaz Sedigh & Rose Anne Devlin & Gilles Grenier, 2016. "Are Quebecers More Stressed Out at Work than Others? An Investigation into the Differences between Quebec and the Rest of Canada in the Level of Work Stress," Working Papers 1614E, University of Ottawa, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:ott:wpaper:1614e
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    File URL: http://sciencessociales.uottawa.ca/economics/sites/socialsciences.uottawa.ca.economics/files/1614e_0.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Michael Baker & Jonathan Gruber & Kevin Milligan, 2008. "Universal Child Care, Maternal Labor Supply, and Family Well-Being," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 116(4), pages 709-745, August.
    2. Christopher P. Barrington-Leigh, 2013. "The Quebec Convergence and Canadian Life Satisfaction, 1985-2008," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 39(2), pages 193-219, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Stress au travail; Enquête sur la santé dans les collectivités canadiennes; comparaisons interprovinciales de stress; Québec; Canada;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J28 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Safety; Job Satisfaction; Related Public Policy
    • J08 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics Policies

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