Non-Frontline Employees’ Emotional Behavior During Crises: A Comparison Between Essential and Non-Essential Industries

Abstract

The development of organizational strategies to face crises should identify, analyze, and use employee emotions. This study provides a comparative perspective between the emotions of non-frontline employees in essential and non-essential companies during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic – an event that caused major organizational crises. Content analysis identified the same emotions in both industries, albeit to different extents. Employees in the essential industry expressed more interest, less sympathy, and less anxiety, which may have occurred due to a more significant sense of purpose and security in this industry. Hopefulness, gratitude, and love appeared similarly in both essential and non-essential industries. Work-related variables and demographics have no significant contribution toward the prevalence of emotions. As a contribution, this study uncovered similarities and differences between industries, providing a relevant and profound understanding of how the COVID-19 pandemic shaped the emotional state of non-frontline employees.