Want a job you like? Think about more than just the pay, says an expert

Work often defines us. The first question many people ask when they first meet someone is, “What do you do?” If you work full-time, you spend a large portion of your waking hours working. But how often do we think about the role work plays in our lives – and the lives of others?

That's the question Mary Davis, an economist and associate professor in the Institute for Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning, was thinking about when she began her sabbatical in the midst of the pandemic. She wanted to understand “how work relates to the health and well-being of the people who do that work,” she says.

It is not just risky activities, such as lobster fishing alone in the North Atlantic, that affect health, she says. Stress at work, autonomy at work and the question of whether or not you find meaning in your work also affect health.

Davis addresses these and other topics in her new book, “Jobs, Health, and the Meaning of Work.” She wrote the book, she says, to “share the insights with others who are looking for jobs that not only provide balance between work and the rest of life, but also promote the idea that work is a source of health, longevity, and the full expression of life's meaning.”

In it, she tells the stories of individual workers, including her own. She describes her first job as a clerk in a supermarket in rural Florida, where her boss instilled in her the value of hard work, and her first job after college as a federal drug agent at airports, which prompted her to go back to school.

Tufts Now spoke with Davis, who began a new position as senior associate vice provost for education at Tufts in August; she will also retain her post in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning.

Some people feel defined by their job, but for many, work is just a way to pay the bills. You may share the sentiment I once saw on a bumper sticker that said, “I owe. I owe. I'm going to work now.”

Work is universal, but each of us applies this experience differently to our lives. In the book I try to emphasize that even with things like risk factors in the workplace, each person deals with things very differently. There is no one-size-fits-all solution. What is harmful to one person's health can be beneficial to another.

I have a sister whose mantra is, “I work for my paycheck.” She has a very different job than I do. My job is creative and entrepreneurial in many ways. Being a professor has allowed me to forge my own path and do interesting things. I see work as getting paid to do what I want to do, and she sees it as getting paid to do what she doesn't want to do.

Has the nature of work changed due to the pandemic?

I think people's expectations of work have changed. There has been a generational shift in how employees think about work and their performance. Even though the wave of layoffs, when a far higher than average number of Americans quit their jobs starting in early 2021, has subsided, the reason for it is still there. Workers are more likely to change jobs that make them unhappy than they were in the past.

Another big change is the number of people specifically seeking remote work. I think because of the pandemic, they have a better sense of what they want from their work life and are more likely to demand it. And employers are responding. Even employers who want more face-to-face time in the workplace are being more flexible and allowing remote work to attract the best employees.

I don't think we'll go back to what it used to be when it comes to remote work. Many remote workers will never return to an office, at least not in their current job.

Is the shift to remote work a good thing?

I think it's a big change and it has its pros and cons. As a single parent, I can understand why this flexibility and staying at home can be very important for work-life balance in some cases.

In other cases, however, how you interact with your colleagues and how the organization fits together is important for meaningful work. Isolation does not promote a sense of meaningful work, but good relationships and a sense of community do.

I think there's an impact on meaningful work that we don't fully understand yet. When people distance themselves from those around them, it's likely to have a negative long-term impact on their sense that work supports their well-being.

In your book, you describe the case of a teleworker who was being monitored and was so afraid for her job that she only sought help at the end of her shift after a heart attack, but luckily survived in time.

There is definitely more monitoring involved with remote work. In the coming years, it will be challenging to balance the pros and cons of ensuring employee efficiency and protecting them from the potential stress and burnout effects of micromanagement and monitoring.

The gig economy has changed the world of work for many people. What are the advantages and disadvantages?

Low-income workers who survive on this type of contract work are more likely to suffer health consequences from their work. Others, however, do these jobs voluntarily and it is a positive experience. I have met many Uber drivers who enjoy driving around, talking and earning some extra money. These types of workers benefit from the gig economy.

Sometimes the gig economy is portrayed as being all bad and that protections need to be created for all of these workers, but in reality it is the most vulnerable workers – often minorities and low-income earners – who need protection, not all gig workers. That is why regulating the industry has proven so difficult. Effective measures to protect gig workers must take into account the often conflicting needs of very different groups of workers.

Can you talk about how the work environment affects people’s physical and mental health?

There are a range of long-term chronic health effects through to acute effects. For example, if a fisherman falls overboard, that is an acute hazard. That is what we have always looked at in the past when it comes to workplace health – hazards and how to reduce them.

But many employees today are more likely to face long-term chronic stress and burnout. This is sometimes due to bad bosses, sometimes to poor organizational structures, but also to an unfair or transparent compensation system or to company values ​​that do not match the values ​​of the employees.

Irregular working hours have also been shown to have negative effects on health. Employees cannot take care of their own health when working irregular hours. On the other hand, there is a lot of evidence that companies and bosses can remedy this type of situation by providing more predictable working hours.

Based on your research, what advice would you give on the topic of work?

When I looked at my own work life and how I struggled through different situations, I was able to step back and ask myself what exactly is causing me stress at the moment. Is it something I can control? Is it something organizational? Is it something personal? I was able to do this by looking at my own work life and finding ways to change situations when that was possible.

The better you know your interests and which work situation suits you best, the better you can use them in the job market to have better opportunities in your professional life.