Relate INSIGHTS 2020/04 – Overworked, Underpaid and Stigmatized: Economic and Psychological Factors Contributing to Diminished Worker Mental Health in Asia

Emerging and developing Asian economies reflects the region’s rapid transformation from agricultural to manufacturing and services-based industries. The region’s economic growth, however, may have come at cost of its workers’ mental health. Workers in Asia spend, on average, more hours at work per week than workers outside of Asia, leading to reports of increased burnout and mental health issues. Broad, macro-level economic factors such as job insecurity, evolving labor markets and increasing use of technology in modern workplaces explain provide only a partial explanation for the rise of mental health concerns in the region. Psychological factors – particularly the work ethos and cultural acceptance of prolonged work hours may be inadvertently contributing to adverse mental health consequences among Asian workers. Any intervention aimed at addressing mental health concerns in Asian workplaces needs to account for the complex interplay between economic and psychological factors and work toward de-stigmatization of mental health concerns that remain prevalent in this region.