The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Occupational Stress in Restaurant Work: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

The economic downturn due to the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacted the food service industry—one of the largest workforce sectors in the United States. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the occupational stressors experienced by restaurant and food service workers during the COVID-19 pandemic through a detailed assessment of their lived experiences. Thematic analysis was used to identify patterns within data from sixteen semi-structured interviews with people employed or recently employed in the restaurant industry during July of 2020. Five themes were highlighted including fear of being exposed to the COVID-19 virus while working under inadequate safety policies, job insecurity, inconsistent pay and hours and a lack of health benefits and paid time off, all of which increased occupational stress and led to uncertainty if respondents would return to the restaurant industry. Hardships associated with the pandemic were mitigated by the support and connections fostered by the communities built within the restaurants. Results led to several recommendations to address the social and economic contributors to occupational stress at the structural and population levels which can be used in the current and post-pandemic workplace.

Addressing Workplace Stressors Emerging from the Pandemic

“…Further, access to personal protective equipment (PPE) was limited even for health care workers, and communications regarding safe working conditions were inconsistent. 14,[17][18][19][20][21]…”

Knowing Well, Being Well: well-being born of understanding: Supporting Workforce Mental Health During the Pandemic

“…13,23,24 Workers' deteriorated health has been linked to decreased employee performance, increased job vacancies, and high turnover. 14,16,22,25-28…”

“…Unprepared human resource management led to increased anxiety and uncertainty among staff, which intensified workplace conflicts. 14,15…”

“…Further, access to personal protective equipment (PPE) was limited even for health care workers, and communications regarding safe working conditions were inconsistent. 14,17-21…”

The implications of home office adaptation during the COVID-19 pandemic: an experimental analysis on the Quality of Work Life

“…Based on the pressing need to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, clinical trials and epidemiological studies have been undertaken, however less attention has been paid to the contextualized experiences and meanings attributed to the strategies to mitigate the virus spread on workers (Lippert et al, 2021;Tremblay et al, 2021). This paper examines the relevance of home office adaptation in capturing deeper understandings of current lived realities of those affected by the pandemic.…”