“I cried, vomited, had chronic stress and even went to therapy; after that, they fired me”: these are some of the consequences of the lack of disconnection from work in Ecuador

Like everyone who gets a job, Carla was thrilled seven years ago when she was eventually hired by a well-known academic institution in Ecuador. and in the region. He performed well and soon signed a permanent contract.

Everything was working normally until the COVID-19 pandemic arrived and therefore she was sent to telework. Carla was worried because five people lived in her house and a minor who received online classes. For everyone there was a computer and it was “crazy”, which lasted seven months.

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Carla’s mother used the computer to work, her other relatives too, and the girl for class. Carla worked when she could, at night and in the early morning due to the lack of equipment.

She notified the company of this eventuality and never received a response. In fact, he called the manager and he didn’t give him a solution either. In the end, Carla was able to buy a computer to a friend and that’s how he worked from September 2020.

Over time his work became mixed, that is, he went to the office and worked at home, but no longer had a disconnect. They wrote to him on weekends, on regular days, at night, and in the early morning until he reached a point of extreme stress., who asked the company for help, but it was not favorable. She decided to go to therapy because she was sick every day with headaches, stomach aches, she felt anxiety, paranoia and so on.

With that scenario, Her therapist recommended a six-month leave of absence and Carla applied for it without pay. because his state was not so “justifiable”.

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She rested that time, recovered and returned “with good energy”, but upon her return she was fired. At that moment, Carla felt that everything came back: “It gave me anxiety, everything I ate I vomited, I cried.”

Now Carla is coordinating with a lawyer to file a lawsuit because she believes that the company “harmed her health.” She still hasn’t recoveredyou should do breathing exercises and not think so much about the future, which is what terrifies you the most because of your debts.

Carla’s situation is also experienced by other workers, perhaps in different circumstances, but always linked to a lack of disconnection from work, an aspect that is regulated in the Labor Code, as 48 hour rest period and in ministerial agreement no. MDT-2022-237, of December 23, 2022, which must be of at least twelve continuous hours in a 24-hour period when the shift ends.

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This last document, in its article 14, also mentions that the employer must have a job disconnection policywhich includes, among other points, training and education measures regarding the working day and an internal procedure to process complaints due to disrespect for the right to disconnect.

The labor lawyer Vanessa Velásquez assures that these situations are the ones that cause occupational diseases such as chronic low back pain, pain in the lower back. “There are people who are burned out with stress, with nerves. It is important that the social worker approaches, but for a change these ministerial agreements do not say anything ”, he reproaches.

In fact, that document, in its Sole Transitory Provision, stipulates a 90-day period for the employer to implement the disconnection policymore or less before the end of March.

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For the clinical psychologist Susan González, disconnection is more than necessary because mental health is not a “game”. “Sometimes you think you can hold on tolerate, but it must be taken into account that what this progressive overload or lack of rest of the worker will do is delete a subject. There is no longer a subject, rather we are talking about an object as if it were a robot and we are not a robot. We have desires, a life, relationships”, argues the specialist.

González warns that the first signs are discomforts such as strong headaches, in legs, arms, stomach and feelings like anger and sadness. But, as that overload increases, they become vomiting, fainting, no longer seeing meaning in life and therefore committing suicide.

The clinical psychologist advises her clients and other citizens to think about the following: “We cannot change our life for a job.”

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González acknowledges that the economic situation is complex, but asserts that without good health it is impossible to continue. “There are many workers who, for fear of losing their job, of facing the boss, repress and they fall into an object position for the other, where you can’t feel, you can’t complain. It is very difficult to get out of that position and therapy is necessary. Having a place to complain, vent, little by little to get out of that position, but they are not always understood (by employers) and one of the measures they take is to get out of there because their lives start to be in danger”, explains the doctor, whoever points out that the solution is not always to give up but rather that this circle changes, respect you, but if it is not possible, it is better to step aside.

These cases are leading to the existence of called “great resignation”, emphasizes Sebastián Lima, director of quality and service of Adecco Ecuadorwho adds that it is not only due to the impact on mental health but also the lack of opportunities.

“The pandemic brought the loss of work, therefore the company seeks to optimize and makes a person assume more responsibilities, which were not contemplated at the beginning and causes him to relapse into mental exhaustion. So, they already feel tired of doing several functions, perhaps for the same salary, because in some industries they don’t see good results,” says Lima.

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Adecco carried out a study in 25 countries in 2022, including Ecuador, where it was determined that the 72% are not worried about losing their job, a figure that increased compared to 2021 when it was 61%. In addition, a quarter of the 30,000 respondents feel that their mental health has worsened over the last year, where women are the most concerned. Likewise, one in two workers is worried about experiencing burnout in the future.

The study reveals that there 36% who say they have suffered burnout (job wear) and one in four have left the workforce for this reason.

Lima considers that the human resources area is strategic when speaking to the general manager. “Go with real numbers of how much we are losing by not retaining a talent (due to overload). You have to make a budget to develop my talent, train it, generate engagement without having to disrespect rights”, says Lima. (YO)