Stigmatized labour: An overlooked service worker's stress

Abstract

Service workers like social workers are valuable to society (LeCroy and Stinson, 2004), even noble and heroic (Ashforth et al., 2007), yet, perversely, they are often socially stigmatized, seen as "dirty" by their communities because they deal with "tainted" people (Ashforth and Kreiner, 1999). Other service workers also suffer stigmatization because their role is associated with effluent (e.g., refuse collector), they have a servile relationship with others (e.g., housekeeper), or adopt tasks that are perceived as amoral (e.g., pawnbroker) or intrusive (e.g., telemarketer). We propose that feelings of stigma lead to poor well-being and present a conceptual model which introduces the concept..