Workplace stress and its management in Norwegian Refugee Council, Ethiopia

Abstract

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NCR) is an independent, humanitarian, non-profit, NGO which is established to provide assistance, protection, and durable solutions to refugees and internally displaced persons, worldwide. The organization is currently operating in Ethiopia, particularly in Somali, Tigray, Benishangul Gumuz and Gambela Regions. It was assumed that most of the Organization’s employees are exposed to stress, since they are stationed in remote areas far away from the central Office, where they cannot easily get adequate support and prompt response to their inquiries. The purpose of this study was, therefore, to assess the magnitude of work place stress of the NRC project staff and examine the way it is managed by both the Organization and the employees themselves. Accordingly, relevant data for the study were collected from 180 respondents selected from the total population using purposive sampling technique, through the distribution of questionnaire. Interview sessions were also conducted to collect supplementary data from the management team. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistical method. The findings indicate that the most serious workplace stress problem in the organization is workload. The respondents claim that they are overloaded. The findings also indicate that no serious stress symptoms are observed among the employees. The employees also seem to be aware about the commonly used individual stress coping mechanisms. The information obtained from both the employees and the management team members on the other hand indicates that there is no well thought stress prevention and management system designed by the Organization. The organization is, therefore, advised to consider the limitations identified, and take the required corrective measures.

Key words: Workplace stress, stressors, stress symptoms, stress management/ prevention, effect of stress.