SINGAPORE: A Singaporean worker, who’s only three months into her one-year contract, shared on social media that she already feels drained by the overwhelming demands of her job.
In her post on Reddit’s “Ask Singapore” forum, she explained that she has been handling the responsibilities of two people since her colleague quit.
She described how the stress has been affecting her, revealing that she wakes up not only “dreading work” but also feeling anxious about the day ahead. In an effort to keep up with her tasks, she has been cutting her lunch breaks short.
“I lose hair and sleep over the problems I have to solve,” she wrote. “My weekends are filled not with leisure but me replying a hundred emails. I’m so so tired and it just feels so much right now.”
She also mentioned that the only thing keeping her going is the thought of ‘”when her one-year contract will finally end,” but she is uncertain how much longer she can sustain this pace without risking burnout. “I really don’t know how to keep it up,” she said.
“If it’s me, I’ll ask for increase pay”
In the discussion thread, other Reddit users shared their own experiences and offered words of encouragement.
One user said, “Oh no, this was me two years ago in my last job! What I regret is not putting more boundaries.”
Another commented, “I left my previous job because of this: overtime, high turnover, the need to guide junior staff, and weekend burnout. You don’t owe the company anything. I’m now working for a company that values work-life balance, so jump ship when you can.”
Others urged her to stop doing the work of two people, saying that doing so would only lead to burnout and decreased performance in the long run.
One Redditor said, “Stop doing workload of more than one person. Obviously companies are exploiting it and if you are keeping up, they see no reason to increase headcount.
“They can threaten to not approve leave or cut your salary or terminate you. But you know the MOM law and they can’t do anything if you’re not doing anything.”
Several users also advised her that if she didn’t want to leave the company, she should at least have an honest conversation with her boss about the workload. They suggested discussing whether some of the tasks could be reassigned to others or if the workload could be distributed more evenly.
If that wasn’t possible, they recommended asking for a higher salary to match the increased responsibilities.
One Redditor added, “If it’s me, I’ll ask for increase pay so I can convince myself to do more otherwise resigned immediately, professional life draining your mental health even for a days without any significant insensitive, not worthy at all.”
More Singaporean workers are experiencing burnout
According to the latest Wellness at Work report by Employment Hero, 61% of Singaporean workers are experiencing burnout.
Although this represents a slight improvement from 62% in 2022, it underscores the persistent difficulties employees face in managing workplace stress and maintaining mental well-being.
Read more: Over 60% of Singapore workers are experiencing burnout, according to new survey.
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