The state of mental health of many Euronews’ employees is alarming. The situation is not improving, according to the National Union of Journalists in France (SNJ). An alert for serious and imminent danger has officially been filed in the official register of serious and imminent danger. The SNJ has asked the company to act to stop the danger. The labour inspectorate and the DREETS have been informed by unions.
The debate
There is a cost to this craft: journalists who fear for their safety or have to report on the pain and suffering of others will frequently find there is a mental toll. Some speakers have shared personal accounts of experiences related to their job that have impacted their mental health. The health risks of stress on the job are significant.
Let’s talk!
Experts already talk of (techno) stress to refer to the psychological impact of information and communication technologies on our lives, for example, in terms of increased productivity or job satisfaction, both positive (autonomy or flexibility provided by teleworking) and negative, associated with problems of anxiety or fatigue. However, technology is one of the main sources of stress, as EMPOWER project researchers say in their blog EMPOWERed While Working. That “techno-stress” exhausts us. Fortunately, there is something we can do to improve our mental health, as I explain in this article published in the What’s up Health platform by Llorente y Cuenca.
The research
Every year, about 12,000 million working days are lost due to mental problems according to data from the platform EMPOWER (https://empower-project.eu/), a European project that drives mental health in the workplace. Mental health problems will cost the global economy around $16 trillion by 2030. A recent global study showed that long work hours contribute to heart attack, stroke and higher rates of injury and illness.
The resources
The IWMF is partnering with the Dart Center for Journalism & Trauma to train a community of therapists to offer journalists mental health support.
This article is part of Broken Souls newsletter, a journalism and mental health project by Maria Miret.
