Relationship between professional exhaustion and working conditions in Fiscalía de Manta employees

Abstract

Within the workplace, there are many factors that affect human behavior, one of them is burnout, which affects both physical and mental health. Apart from decreasing people's work and academic performance, it can cause personal disorders, and even affects the relationship between friends and family. In 2000, the WHO declared that professional burnout is an occupational risk factor.  Already in (2022) the WHO points out the following: all workers have the right to a safe and healthy work environment, thanks to this they can reduce tension, conflicts and increase work performance and productivity. The objective of this investigation is to identify the causes of professional burnout and what the current working conditions are in the employees of the Manta Prosecutor's Office. This study focused on the different positions of Fiscal Agents, Secretaries and Assistant Prosecutors of Manta, where each one has working conditions that demand them and as a consequence, in certain conditions, they generate stress in people. The method of this research is based on a qualitative approach, 34 study subjects, servers and workers of the Manta Prosecutor's Office, were investigated. Among the results of this research, it was obtained that there is a relationship between professional exhaustion and working conditions, especially affecting tax agents, secretaries and experts.  The most common causal factors include workload, weekend shifts, physical environment, and absence of safety. The quality of life of servers and workers is affected by burnout, especially when it is not intervened in a timely manner. To mitigate Burnout, it is necessary to raise awareness about burnout, generate critical awareness, implement active pause spaces, carry out preventive interventions and improve working conditions, such as professional autonomy. Within the conclusions of this research, it was found that Burnout symptoms affect negatively both quality of life and job satisfaction. Five main factors have been identified as key contributors to burnout: High workload, long hours, physical environment and absence of security. Interventions that address these factors could improve the quality of life of the servers and workers of the Manta Prosecutor's Office, which is important to be evaluated in future research