Multiple employment relationships, precariousness and psychosocial suffering in the daily life of a university hospital

Introduction  in a university hospital, multiple employment relationships are adopted, implying distinct contract regimes and also distinct employers. In this context, there are four types of employment relationships: civil servants, employees, outsourced workers, and public hired employees, who, working side by side, coexist with differences such as salaries, working hours, union representation, among others.

Objective  to understand the psychosocial demands faced by workers in the daily work environment of a university hospital.

Methods  Ethnographic study based on the framework of Social Psychology of Work. The following procedures were used: observation, field diary, interviews, and document analysis. The material produced was subjected to thematic analysis. Results: the different forms of employment relationships between workers and the studied hospital impose unequal relationships, giving rise to experiences of competition, hostility, individualization, uncertainty, insecurity, anguish, and injustice, shaping a work routine in which psychosocial suffering becomes an attribute of the job.

Conclusion  multiple employment relationships weaken the collective organization of workers, undermine rights, and establish a scenario of constant tension with repercussions on mental health.

Work Relationships; Precariousness of Work; Psychosocial Suffering; Daily Life; University Hospital