NONG LAM UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND PEDAGOGY

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The Phenomenon of Workplace Stress Occurred in

Some Small and Medium Construction Enterprises
during Covid-19 Pandemic.

Subject: Organizational Behavior

Lecturer: Huỳnh Thị Cẩm Loan
Students: Nguyễn Trần Minh Hoàng – 18128058
Nguyễn Minh Quang – 20128249
Huỳnh Khấu Minh Quân – 20128247
Lê Thụy Ngọc Quyên – 20128252
Phạm Phương Toàn – 20128284

Ho Chi Minh – 2022

 Contents

I. Introduction ........................................................................................... 3
A. Stress definition .................................................................................. 3
B. Context ................................................................................................ 3
II. Analyzing .............................................................................................. 4
A. The methods of research:.................................................................... 4
B. The result of research:......................................................................... 5
C. The solutions of research .................................................................... 8
III. Conclusion ........................................................................................... 9
IV. References ......................................................................................... 10

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I. Introduction

A. Stress definition

Stress is defined by psychologists as the body’s reaction to a change that requires a

physical, mental, or emotional adjustment or response (Dyer, 2006). Stress is an
inevitable feature of life. It is the force that gets us out of bed in the morning,
motivates us at the gym, and inspires us to work.

As you will see in the sections below, stress is a given factor in our lives. We may
not be able to avoid stress completely, but we can change how we respond to
stress, which is a major benefit. Our ability to recognize, manage, and maximize
our response to stress can turn an emotional or physical problem into a resource.

Researchers use polling to measure the effects of stress at work. The results have
been eye-opening. According to a 2001 Gallup poll, 80% of American workers
report that they feel workplace stress at least some of the time (Kersten, 2002).
Another survey found that 65% of workers reported job stress as an issue for them,
and almost as many employees ended the day exhibiting physical effects of stress,
including neck pain, aching muscles, and insomnia, mental effects of stress to have
effective and efficient projects to overcome difficult situations. It is clear that
many individuals are stressed at work.

B. Context

COVID-19 has become a hot topic and attracted much academic attention. Apart
from medical studies on COVID-19, researchers in the world also focus on the
topics of COVID 19’s impacts across multiple fields, including education, gender
quality, refugee issues, especially, small business projects.

Small and medium-sized enterprises are classified by size including micro

enterprises, enterprises small, medium enterprise.

Small and medium-sized enterprises have played an important role in our country
for many reasons, such as creating a large volume of jobs, earning foreign
currency through exports, and supplying raw materials and components to the
local businesses as well as larger businesses. They are considered to become
corporations. Even in the context of the current global crisis, they are all the more
powerful as their greater flexibility allows them to adjust their production
processes crisis period, even though the international production chains have
severely affected. Many people believe that they are less dependent on formal

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markets and formal credit, so they can react more quickly and flexibly to
unexpected shocks.

Governments across the world is still attempting to control the disease. However,
negative developments abroad are worrisome and has negatively affected some
business sectors. Almost everyone is worried about job instability, job loss,
reduced income or even bankruptcy. Therefore, the purpose of essay is about the
phenomenon of workplace stress occurs in specific departments of some medium
sized enterprises during the period of COVID 19 pandemic.

II. Analyzing

A. The methods of research:

The study is mainly based on a survey of workers and small and medium-sized
construction enterprises in Vietnam. The authors designed a questionnaire to
collect the necessary data necessary for research. The questionnaire is divided into
two main parts:

 Part 1 includes personal information demographics of the surveyed people

such as: full name, age, working experience in the field construction,
professional qualifications, position participating in the project, information
about the project.

 Part 2 includes questions to assess the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on

different aspects of the business construction industry such as production
and business situation, production and business costs, usage situation labor
and solutions that businesses take during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A pilot study before the mass survey was conducted by soliciting opinions of five
experts with many years of experience in the construction field in Vietnam ( more
than 10 years of experience. Experts conduct a general assessment of the
questionnaire, the suitability of content and form presentation, easy to understand
language,. . . After receiving expert feedback, the authors have synthesis and
revised questionnaire. Research data were collected through a mass survey
conducted by send online questionnaires based on Google Docs platform to
individuals working in enterprises small and medium scale in Vietnam.
Respondents responded to existing questionnaires and evaluated the author's work
impact of the COVID-19 epidemic based on their actual experience when
participating in construction projects during the during this pandemic. The total
number of samples sent is 105, the total number of collected and valid samples is

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91 samples (degrees average age: 32.6; standard deviation: 4.8), reaching the rate
of 86.6%. Out of a total of 91 valid samples, there are 68 samples at 17 small-scale
construction enterprises (accounting for 74.7%); 23 samples were collected from
11 medium-sized construction enterprises (accounting for 25.3%).

This study demonstrates about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on small
and medium-sized enterprises in Vietnam is The assessment is based on the
following aspects: Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on economic
productionbusiness of construction enterprises, the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic on production and business costs of construction enterprises, the impact
of the COVID-19 pandemic on the employment situation of construction
enterprises and some solutions construction enterprises have implemented during
the demonstration out the COVID-19 pandemic.

B. The result of research:

The data obtained after screening were analyzed. To expand this into 3 main parts,
the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the relation of stress for this situation
on small and medium-sized businesses in Vietnam evaluated the following
aspects: Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economic situation of
construction business, the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the cost of doing
business of the construction business, and the impact of COVID-19 on the
employment situation of the construction business.

 Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economic situation of

construction business.

In the context of the world and domestic economies facing many difficulties due to
the complicated and prolonged development of the COVID-19 epidemic, this has
greatly affected the production and business activities of enterprises. including
those operating in the construction sector. As shown in Figure 1, 46.15% of
construction companies think that their business activities are more difficult during
the COVID-19 pandemic. While this 6-digit figure of small and medium-sized
construction enterprises is 42.65% and 56.52%, respectively. In addition, 47.06%
of small-scale construction enterprises said that the COVID-19 epidemic did not
affect their operations, while this figure of medium-sized construction enterprises
was 26.09%. Only 10.29% of small-scale construction enterprises operating had
better production and business activities during the COVID-19 epidemic, while
this figure of medium-sized construction enterprises was higher, at 17.39%. The
cause of this situation is that the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic has affected
many construction projects, disrupted, delayed or reduced progress to ensure

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safety regulations for epidemic prevention and control. at the request of the
Government of Vietnam.

Change in financial state also is one of the highest points in The Holmes-Rahe
scale when Stress can result from positive and negative life changes. These are
relative values that help us comprehend how various life events affect our stress
levels and how they may have an adverse effect on our health and wellbeing
(Fontana, 1989).

 The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the cost of doing business of the

construction business.

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Construction costs typically consist of 60–70% of the cost of the materials, 10–
20% of the cost of labor, and the remaining 10–20% of the cost of building the
machinery and equipment [28, 29]. The effects of COVID-19 on the production
and operating expenses of the construction industry, including direct material
costs, direct labor costs, equipment costs, and indirect costs, are depicted in
Figures 3 to 6. (business administration costs, site management costs, bank interest
payments, ...). The results of the poll show that while some construction firms
have been impacted by the COVID-19 epidemic, the majority of construction
enterprises consider that their production and business costs have not altered
significantly. Production costs and operating expenses vary in other industries

The difficulty in mobilizing supplies, especially imported components, is the result

of the COVID-19 epidemic's impact, which has caused disruptions in the supply
chain of building resources. increasing the cost of raw materials [30]. Regarding
labor costs, the majority of questioned businesses—55.88 percent of small
businesses and 56.52 percent of medium-sized businesses—said that direct labor
costs remained the same. In contrast, the percentage of businesses that believe that
labor expenses will rise is 26.09 percent for medium-sized businesses and 29.41
percent for small businesses. Thus, the result of stress in this area seems to not
affect on those enterprises seriously.

 The impact of COVID-19 on the employment situation of the construction

business.

According to the General Statistics Office (2020), as of September 2020, the

whole country has 31.8 million people aged 15 and over negatively affected by the
COVID-19 epidemic, including those who lost their jobs, have to take time off
work/rotary leave, reduce working hours, reduce income, etc. In which 68.9% of
people have reduced income (with a slight decrease in income), nearly 40.0% have
to reduce working hours /take a break from work / take a break from work and
about 14.0% are forced to take a break or suspend production and business
activities. The service sector was hardest hit by the COVID-19 epidemic with
68.9% of workers affected, followed by the industry and construction sector with
66.4% of workers affected; the proportion of affected labor force in the
agriculture, forestry and fishery sector is 27.0%. The construction industry
employs a large number of workers compared to other industries, so the labor
demand of construction companies is significantly affected by the spread of the
COVID-19 epidemic. Findings from research indicate that a construction project's
workforce could be reduced by 30% to 90% due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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As evidenced by its high rating on the life stresses scale, losing a job can be a very
stressful occurrence. It may also result in further stressful situations, including
financial difficulties, which would raise one's stress level. According to research,
job insecurity and downsizing are linked to increased stress, drinking, and poorer
performance and creativity (Moore, Grunberg, & Greenberg, 2004; Probst et al.,
2007; Sikora et al., 2008). For instance, a study of more than 1,200 Finnish
employees discovered a link between greater psychological strain and absence and
historical downsizing or anticipation of future downsizing (Kalimo, Taris, &
Schaufeli, 2003).

C. The solutions of research

The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected the entire social life and economy.
The impact of the pandemic does not only stop at the direct impact on production
and business activities of enterprises, but also causes negative social effects such
as job loss, income reduction... Many businesses are standing still, in danger of
being suspended or bankrupt. Against that backdrop, the Government has
implemented many solutions, monetary, fiscal and social security policies to
support businesses and people to overcome the difficult period of the COVID-19
pandemic such as: monetary - credit policy in order to restructure, relax - postpone
debt and consider reducing interest on the total affected debt balance; new loan
package with a total commitment limit of about 300,000 billion VND with a
preferential interest rate than ordinary credit from 1% - 2.5%/year; fiscal package
(extension, postponement of tax and land rent, reduction of some taxes and fees)
with a total value of VND 180,000 billion; social security package of 62,000
billion VND for more than 20 million workers and disadvantaged people.

In addition to the Government's support, construction enterprises have also

actively implemented solutions to maintain their business operations and limit the
negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey results show that a
number of solutions have been implemented by construction enterprises, such as:

(1) rearranging or reducing personnel;

(2) reduce the employee's salary;

(3) reduction of reward regimes;

(4) welfare; reduce other costs (advertising, training, ...);

(5) late payment of wages and allowances to employees;

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(6) negotiating late payment of bank loan interest;

(7) negotiate early payment/capital advance;

(8) apply for a special mechanism for enterprises only from the state.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, small-scale enterprises give priority to

implementing solutions such as: reducing the reward and welfare regime; reduce
workers' wages; reduce other costs (advertising, training,..); late payment of
salaries and allowances to employees. Meanwhile, medium-sized enterprises focus
on implementing solutions: rearrange or reduce personnel; late payment of wages
and allowances to employees; reduction of reward and welfare regimes; reduce
workers' wages.

III. Conclusion

The COVID-19 pandemic has been negatively impacting the production and
business activities of most construction enterprises. The study assessed the impact
of this pandemic on aspects of businesses through a survey of people working in
medium- and small-scale construction enterprises in Vietnam. Based on an
analysis of 91 valid survey sample samples, the study assessed the impact of the
COVID-19 epidemic on aspects of construction enterprises such as production and
business situation of construction enterprises; production and business expenses of
construction enterprises, employment situation of construction enterprises; and
some of the solutions the construction enterprise has implemented during the
COVID-19 pandemic. Research has shown that the production and business
activities of most construction enterprises have been more difficult during the
covid-19 epidemic. This has resulted in the revenue and profitability of the
majority of businesses also being reduced. Prolonged losses have contributed to a
lot of stress for workers and owners in factories. This has affected the productivity
of the workers as well as the performance of the factories. In the context of the
COVID-19 epidemic, in addition to the support from the Government, enterprises
have actively taken measures to adapt to the circumstances to maintain production
and business activities such as: reducing reward and welfare regimes; reducing
workers' salaries; delaying payment of wages and allowances to employees;
rearranging or cutting back personnel.

Although this study has made efforts to assess the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic on some aspects of Vietnam's construction enterprises. However, the
sample size of the study is still very modest compared to the workforce and
businesses operating in the field of construction in Vietnam today. Besides, this

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study only focuses on medium-sized and small-scale enterprises. Therefore, this is
a local study, it is difficult to comprehensively evaluate for all construction
enterprises in Vietnam. The study also did not provide specific quantitative
parameters for assessing the extent of business damage caused by the covid-19
outbreak. Therefore, further studies should be conducted at a universal level,
assessing the specific damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in a variety of
perspectives, perspectives, and aspects of the construction industry.

IV. References

1. The World Health Organization (2020). Coronavirus disease (COVID-19)

pandemic.

2. Bartik, A. W., Bertrand, M., Cullen, Z., Glaeser, E. L., Luca, M., Stanton, C.
(2020). The impact of COVID-19 on small business outcomes and expectations.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(30):17656-17666.

3. Araya, F. (2021). Modeling the spread of COVID-19 on construction workers:

An agent-based approach. Safety Science, 133:105022.

4. Gill, P., Stewart, K., Treasure, E., Chadwick, B. (2008). Methods of data
collection in qualitative research: interviews and focus groups. British Dental
Journal, 204(6):291-295.

5. McTague, B., Jergeas, G. (2002). Productivity improvements on Alberta major

construction projects: Phase I-Back to basics. Alberta economic development.

6. Nghị định 39/2018/NĐ-CP (2018). Hướng dẫn Luật Hỗ trợ doanh nghiệp nhỏ và
vừa. Thủ Tướng Chính Phů.

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