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Boundaryless working hours and recovery in Germany
Laura Vieten1,2, Anne Marit Wöhrmann3, Alexandra Michel3,4
1Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA), Dortmund, Germany. vieten.laura@baua.bund.de.
Boundaryless working hours like overtime and extended availability harm employee recovery. Psychological detachment is a key factor, highlighting the need to minimize these work practices for better well-being.
Area of Science:
- Occupational Health Psychology
- Workforce Well-being Research
Background:
- Globalization and digitalization drive flexible work arrangements, including boundaryless working hours.
- Understanding the impact of these modern work trends on employee recovery is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between boundaryless working hours (overtime, Sunday work, extended availability) and employee recovery.
- To examine the mediating and moderating roles of recovery experiences (psychological detachment, relaxation, mastery, control).
Main Methods:
- Analysis of data from 8586 employees in the 2017 BAuA-Working Time Survey.
- Regression analyses were used to test main effects, mediation, and moderation.
Main Results:
- Overtime, Sunday work, and extended availability were negatively associated with the state of recovery.
- Psychological detachment mediated these negative relationships.
- Relaxation and control mediated the link between extended work availability and recovery; no significant moderation effects were found.
Conclusions:
- Boundaryless working hours represent a significant risk to employee recovery, with psychological detachment being a key mediating mechanism.
- High levels of recovery experiences do not buffer the negative effects of boundaryless work on recovery.
- Employers and employees should prioritize minimizing boundaryless working hours to protect employee well-being.
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