Objectives: We aimed to evaluate the effects of new work-related stressors on psychological distress and absenteeism and the role of recognition in these relationships. Methods: Moderated path analyses were carried out on a sample of 1128 health care workers. Results: Increased workload related to COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) (β = 1.511, P ≤ 0.01) and fear of COVID-19 (β = 0.844, P ≤ 0.01) were directly associated with a higher level of psychological distress and indirectly (β = 2.306, P ≤ 0.01; and β = 1.289, P ≤ 0.05, respectively) associated with a higher level of absenteeism. Recognition (β = 0.260, P ≤ 0.001) moderated the association between teleworking and psychological distress. Furthermore, this significant moderation effect had a significant impact on absenteeism (β = 0.392, P ≤ 0.05). Regardless of the workplace (on site or teleworking), high recognition was beneficial for psychological distress. This effect seems more important when working on site.
Conclusions:The results propose that specific new work-related stressors should be addressed in the context of organizational change (eg, a pandemic).
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