What is “emotional labor”? Are you one of those affected?
You’re in the office, and without even thinking about it, you take on the responsibility of managing tension between coworkers, organizing events, or even listening to your team’s frustrations. If this feels natural to you, it may be “emotional labor,” an effort that is often underestimated but is essential to the proper functioning of professional relationships.
Invisible and rarely valued, this work particularly burdens women and people from marginalized groups, and can lead to exhaustion.
What is emotional labor?
The concept of emotional labor was defined by sociologist Arlie Hochschild in 1983. Initially, it referred to efforts to regulate and prioritize the emotions of others, especially in service roles.
Today, this notion extends to invisible contributions in professional environments: defusing conflicts, maintaining a positive climate or managing team emotions. These tasks, although important, are not included in job descriptions and are rarely recognized.
Why is this problematic?
According to an interview by psychologist Mira Brancu, if emotional labor contributes to a better corporate culture in the short term, its lack of recognition can lead to frustration and exhaustion. psychology todayThose who bear this burden – often women or minorities – find themselves locked into support roles, stunting their career progress.
Unvalued emotional overload, combined with implicit expectations, can also reinforce inequities and increase resentment.
How to make it visible and fair?
It is essential to respect individuals’ time and boundaries. A healthy work culture values individual preferences and limits non-essential demands. Employees must document and demonstrate their efforts. By noting their non-visible actions, they can initiate discussions with their managers to receive recognition and support.
Managers should identify imbalances and encourage fair distribution of emotional work while making their teams aware of the importance of this work. To truly value emotional labor it can be incorporated into evaluation criteria and performance objectives. Recognizing this work as an essential pillar of collective success and integrating it into the company’s values is an important approach to ensuring its recognition and sustainability.