Restructuring seriously damages well-being of workers: The case of the restructuring programme in local administration in Greece

Safety Science xxx (2017) xxx–xxx

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Restructuring seriously damages well-being of workers: The case of the restructuring programme in local administration in Greece Theoni Koukoulaki a,⇑, Dimitra Pinotsi a, Paraskevi Geogiadou a, Afroditi Daikou a, Konstantina Zorba a, Antonis Targoutzidis a, Kostas Poulios a, Steryios Naris a, Panayiota Panousi a, Yiannis Skoulatakis a, Spyros Drivas a, Konstantina Kapsali a, Krista Pahkin b a b

Hellenic Institute for Occupational Health and Safety, 143 Liosion, 10445 Athens, Greece Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Finland

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history: Received 26 August 2016 Received in revised form 2 June 2017 Accepted 5 June 2017 Available online xxxx Keywords: Restructuring Work-related stress Job demands Emotional exhaustion Job insecurity Employment contract

a b s t r a c t Organisational restructuring has become an important characteristic of the modern working environment, both for private and public organisations. This study examines the impact of ‘‘Kallikratis”, a major restructuring programme of local administration in Greece, on employee well-being. Using an adapted version of the ‘‘PSYRES” questionnaire in a representative sample of 1600 employees in 13 municipalities, the study investigated the effect of restructuring, job insecurity and psychosocial factors on wellbeing. The main issues identified were the ‘‘rushed” and ‘‘abrupt” implementation of the restructuring process, as well as lack of sufficient information and training. Moreover restructuring resulted in higher levels of (reported) work intensification and stress. Increased work-related stress was found to be related to increased emotional and quantitative job demands, as well as to job insecurity. Moreover, higher levels of emotional exhaustion were found to be related to increased job demands, job insecurity and unfair treatment during change. Employees in certain departments and under permanent contract were found to be more negatively affected by restructuring. Permanent employees reported higher levels of work-related stress and emotional exhaustion. Employees working in urban planning services and waste collection services reported increased workload and significantly higher levels of stress. Restructuring has been expanding both in the private and public sector in Greece and further studies should be carried out to investigate its effects on the well-being of workers. Ó 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction Throughout Europe, approximately 20–30 new cases of restructuring activities are weekly carried out in workplaces (Eurofound, 2016). Since 2002 over 20,000 large-scale restructuring programmes have been implemented in Europe, along with an unknown number of smaller scale restructuring programmes. The Kallikratis programme started in 2011 in all Greek municipalities and was the first large scale restructuring programme in the public sector. During the recession, large scale mergers in the wholesale, retail and banking sectors, as well as privatisation and outsourcing in the public sector followed. Restructuring is often an organisation’s response to the changing economic environment. In other words, restructuring of organ-

⇑ Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected] (T. Koukoulaki).

isations is driven by the need to maintain or enhance profitability and, therefore, to ensure the survival of the company (and jobs) over the long term (Storrie, 2006). As a consequence of such restructuring, the volume of production and/or size of the organisation are changing to an extent that is unavoidably felt by the employees (Pahkin, 2015). Such changes require employees to exert effort in order to respond to a new, sometimes uncertain and emotionally demanding situation, since it is the people who change (Bovey and Hede, 2001). Organisational restructuring, poor economic climate and increased unemployment, were identified as common threats, among countries, in the prevention of psychosocial risks and work-related stress by a Delphi study carried out by the ILO to assess future scenarios and contributory factors related to this area (ILO, 2016). The existing research literature indicates that restructuring can have a negative impact on employees’ health and well-being, not only for those who are made redundant but also for those who

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2017.06.002 0925-7535/Ó 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Please cite this article in press as: Koukoulaki, T., et al. Restructuring seriously damages well-being of workers: The case of the restructuring programme in local administration in Greece. Safety Sci. (2017), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2017.06.002

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remain in the organisation after the changes. The health effects for those who have been made redundant have been described extensively in several studies (see e.g. Bohle et al., 2001). There is also evidence among the survivors of downsizing, that major downsizing is related to poor mental health, medically certified sickness absence, and poor physical health, including cardiovascular disease mortality (Ferrie et al., 2008; Kivimäki et al., 2000a; Vahtera et al., 1997; Vahtera et al., 2004). However, it is not only downsizing activities including staff reduction that negatively affect employee well-being. For example mergers of companies (Hogan and Overmyer-Day, 1994), represent a form of restructuring which aims to expand organisations’ operations and has been found to increase the prevalence of subjective stress, and anxiety (Haruyama et al., 2008), as well as the risk of generalised anxiety disorders (Wang et al., 2012). A review by de Jong et al. (2016) also concluded that there is no clear difference in the impact of restructuring on employee well-being with or without staff reductions: the impact is mainly negative. However, there is also evidence that the consequences can be positive as well, mainly depending on the type of the change, its consequences and its implementation (Cartwright et al., 2007; Loretto et al., 2010; Pahkin et al., 2014). The role of job characteristics and individual characteristics in the relationship between restructuring and employee well-being has also been examined. Downsizing has been found to cause changes in work and social relationships. For example reduced job control has been found to be related to increased sickness absence (Kivimäki et al., 2000b). Also Wiezer et al. (2011) found that prolonged restructuring is followed by increased job demands and emotional demands, more conflicts at the workplace, less support from the supervisor and colleagues, less adaptive culture and less participation in decision making. These factors in turn lead to less job satisfaction and commitment, more exhaustion and increased sickness absenteeism. Furthermore, employees who experience downgrading of their job position during the merger suffer from similar kinds of impairments at their workplace. However, Wiezer et al. (2011) also found a positive effect on the wellbeing of employees whose position improved during the merger that was related with increased support from the organisation, more opportunities to participate in decision making, more autonomy and also an increased sense of competence. It is evident that restructuring does affect employee well-being, but there are several different factors involved, and the relationships between them are not always straightforward. In a more recent study, de Jong et al. (2016) found that increased physical demands, decreased participation in decision-making, reduction in skill discretion, decreased job control and support from superiors had a mediating role in this relationship. Therefore, in this study we examined the relationship between restructuring, job insecurity and psychosocial factors with employee well-being. Since restructuring aims to enhance organisational performance and competitiveness, it often leads to work intensification, stress and fatigue (Kieselbach et al., 2009). Therefore in this study we examined the impact of quantitative work demands on perceived stress. Regarding job characteristics we paid attention not only to intensification of work, but also to job autonomy, since it has, for example, been found that employee autonomy tends to be higher in restructured workplaces and this holds true across different occupational groups (Eurofound, 2012). Hence, job control of employees after the Kallikratis restructuring programme was examined. Since job demands and support from the supervisor have been found to explain the influence of prolonged restructuring on emotional exhaustion, but not general health (Geuskens et al., 2012) we also investigated their effects on emotional exhaustion. In the review of de Jong et al. (2016) job insecurity was classified as an individual characteristic, as it reflects the individual

appraisal of the threat of job loss. Job insecurity has been found to explain the adverse effect of downsizing on occupational health and safety (Quinlan and Bohle, 2009), but also the effects of prolonged exposure to restructuring (Geuskens et al., 2012). It has also been associated with adverse health effects (e.g., De Witte, 2005; Sverke et al., 2002; Virtanen et al., 2005). Job insecurity does not only mediate the relationship between restructuring and wellbeing: its impact on well-being can be moderated by job characteristics (see de Jong et al., 2016). Therefore, in this study we investigated the relationship between job insecurity and stress, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction. Employment contract has also been highlighted as important in the relationship between restructuring and wellbeing (e.g. Vahtera et al., 2004). In the current study special attention was paid to potentially vulnerable groups of employees during restructuring (according to employment contract, and departments). Finally, we addressed mental well-being both as a negative state (workrelated stress, emotional exhaustion) as well as a positive state (job satisfaction) to grasp a more complete picture of restructuring effects.

2. The ‘‘Kallikratis Programme The system of local government in Greece experienced several modifications in recent years, by two major reforms, namely Kapodistrias Plan (Law 2539/1997) and Kallikratis Programme (Law 3852/2010). Both reforms were part of the administrative decentralisation process in Greece aiming at delegating power from central government to local authorities. Results demonstrated that Kapodistrias reform had bigger social acceptance than Kallikratis, as the economic crisis and rough spatial planning deterred the effective implementation of the second wave of reforms (Ioannidis, 2015). The ‘‘Kallikratis Reform” or the ‘‘New Architecture of Local Government and Decentralisation” (Law 3852/2010) passed at the Greek Parliament at May 2010, aimed at cutting down public spending through limitation in the number of Local Government Organisations (OTA) and their legal entities and through management rationalisation. Through the Kallikratis Programme commencing on 1/01/2011, 4000 legal entities in local government were abolished, followed by a subsequent reduction of primary level local authorities from 1034 to 325. At the secondary level, 13 new regions would replace the existing 54 prefectures. It was estimated that €1.8 billion would be saved every year by budget cutting and rationalisation of operations in the new authorities. Some 20,000–25,000 employees with non-permanent contracts (fixed term contracts and project based contracts) were expected to be laid off. A large number of the remaining employees (approximately 10,000 in 2 years) of restructured local government entities were (voluntarily or mandatorily) transferred to other authorities and municipalities. Although the reform was aiming at transferring employees to organisations within their city of residence and to posts of equivalent category or expertise, this was not always feasible. The Kallikratis reform did not improve the social benefits from local government because it was implemented during the great economic crisis of Greece (Hazakis and Ioannidis, 2014). Local stakeholders complained about the mergers of municipalities during this restructuring. Moreover the statute did not foresee any improvement in the financing of local government units and the main promoter is still the central government throughout the process of intergovernmental grants (Ioannidis, 2015). Reforms in local administration were merely the beginning of a ‘‘restructuring wave” in the public and private sector in Greece following the pretext of the financial crisis. According to the European Restructuring

Please cite this article in press as: Koukoulaki, T., et al. Restructuring seriously damages well-being of workers: The case of the restructuring programme in local administration in Greece. Safety Sci. (2017), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2017.06.002

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Monitor (Eurofound, 2016), in Greece, there were one million less people in employment in 2016 compared to employment before the crisis. The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of Kallikratis restructuring of local administration in Greece, job insecurity and the psychosocial work environment on well-being of affected employees. In particular, we explored the relationship between restructuring, job insecurity and job characteristics (psychosocial factors) with work-related stress, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction. Additionally, we investigated the relationship between type of employment contract and employment in different departments with work-related stress, emotional exhaustion, and job satisfaction. 3. Method The Kallikratis programme included all 325 municipalities of Greece. Eventually, due to the restructuring, 231 municipalities merged to 92. Sampling included 13 municipalities from several parts of Greece. The main criterion for sampling was the distribution of the population in the municipalities. For a municipality to be included in the study, the population within it had to match the distribution of the population across municipalities in terms of departments. Random sampling was applied according to this distribution. Further inclusion criteria were a significant merging percentage (e.g. number of municipalities merged) and municipalities employing more than 100 employees. A total of 4542 questionnaires was distributed by experienced researchers accompanied by a trade union representative in each municipality. A short introduction to the questionnaire was made directly to the workers. In departments with workers in shifts (e.g. waste collection) where direct distribution of questionnaires was not possible, a short introduction was provided to the representative of trade unions and he/she was responsible for the distribution. In total, 1592 questionnaires were collected in sealed envelopes to ensure confidentiality. The response rate was 35%. The final sample was representative in line with the study inclusion criteria. 12 out of the 13 municipalities were merged with the exception of the municipality of Athens. However, no comparison was conducted between restructured and non-restructured municipalities, since further changes, such as salary reductions, took place in the public sector besides the mergers. The questionnaire used was a translation of the restructuring questionnaire developed and tested in the PSYRES project1 adapted to local administration. The questionnaire sections and response scales are shown in Table 1. Some additional information was collected on the type of restructuring that took place, and respondent demographic characteristics. 4. Results 4.1. Descriptive statistics The participants had an average age of 42.4 ± 7.8 years old, and were 52.4% female and 39.6% male. 37.6% of the sample were holding a University degree, 31.3% were senior high school graduates and 7.8% held an MSc or PhD. More than half of the participants (58%) had a permanent position in the municipality, 19.8% had an open-ended contract and 10.7% a fixed-term contract. The sample was distributed across departments as follows: 21.6% administrative, 17.7% environmen1 PSYRES: Psychosocial Health and Well-being in Restructuring: Key Effects and Mechanisms, www.psyres.pl, 2011.

Table 1 Questionnaire sections and response categories. Survey sections Magnitude/significance of change Magnitude of above mentioned changes (15 items)

Significance of above mentioned changes (3 items) Job insecurity (3 items) Information and support from management (5 items) Information and support from immediate management (6 items) During change Perceived overall justice during change (3 items) Participation and involvement (4 items) Job characteristics Demands: quantitative (3 items) Demands: emotional (2 items) Influence at work (3 items) Role clarity and role conflicts (3 items) Support (2 items) Effort reward imbalance (3 items) Outcomes Overall job satisfaction (1item)

Stress (1item) Emotional exhaustion (5 items)

Response scales 0: no, 1: yes, significantly got worse, 2: yes, a bit got worse, 3: yes, no worse, no better, 4: yes, a bit got better, 5: yes, significantly got better 1: definitely no, 2: no, 3: difficult to say, 4: yes, 5: definitely yes 1: very poorly, 2: rather poorly, 3: neither poorly nor well, 4: rather well, 5: very well

1: strongly disagree, 2: rather disagree, 3: somewhat disagree/somewhat agree, 4: rather agree, 5: strongly agree

1: never/hardly ever, 2: seldom, 3: sometimes, 4: often, 5: always

1: strongly disagree, 2: rather disagree, 3: somewhat disagree/somewhat agree, 4: rather agree, 5: strongly agree 1: very dissatisfied, 2: rather dissatisfied, 3: neither satisfied or dissatisfied, 4: rather satisfied, 5: very satisfied 1: not at all, 2: only a little, 3: to some extent, 4: rather much, 5: very much 1: never/almost never, 2: rarely, 3: sometimes, 4: often, 5: very often/always

tal, 13.4% technical, 12.7% financial, 7.7% urban planning, 2.9 citizens’ service centres, 2.3% programming and 13.9% other services. Regarding the type of restructuring applied, 36.6% of the respondents were employed in a municipality that merged with a bigger one, 37.3% were employed in a municipality merged with a smaller one, 6.4% were employed in a municipality with no merger or transfer of employees from prefectures and districts, 5.8% was employed in a municipality that was abolished and taken over by another organisation and 5% was employed in municipalities of similar size that merged. Almost a quarter of the sample had changed workplace; nevertheless, most employees remained in the same organisation (64.4%), while 16.7% experienced changes in their duties. As shown in Table 2, regarding job insecurity an important percentage reported that there was a risk that their job/tasks could change and that there is also a risk for changing in the future. Supervisors reported that they were ‘‘rather poorly” informed and supported by the management, whereas employees were somehow informed and supported. A third of the employees reported that their organisation was not fair during the change. The majority ‘‘rather disagrees” that they participated or were involved in the changes. Regarding quantitative demands, employees report that they sometimes have to work very fast and distribute their workload unevenly. On average, they feel emotionally involved in their work and they have influence on what they do at work. To ‘‘a large extent” they report having clear objectives of their work and knowing exactly the areas they are responsible for. On the other hand, they mention ‘‘somewhat” contradictory demands that are placed on them at work.

Please cite this article in press as: Koukoulaki, T., et al. Restructuring seriously damages well-being of workers: The case of the restructuring programme in local administration in Greece. Safety Sci. (2017), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2017.06.002

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Table 2 Questionnaire section means (m) and standard deviations (s).

* **

m

sd

Magnitude/significance of change Magnitude of mentioned changes* Significance of mentioned changes Job insecurity Information and support from management** Information and support from direct management during change Perceived overall justice during change Participation and involvement

2.2 3.3 2.9 2.1 2.7 2.9 2.0

0.9 1.4 0.8 1.1 1.3 0.7 1.0

Job characteristics (demands) Quantitative Emotional Influence at work Role clarity and role conflicts Support Effort-reward imbalance

3.5 3.4 3.0 3.6 3.5 2.7

0.8 0.9 1.0 0.8 1.0 0.9

Outcomes Overall job satisfaction Stress Emotional exhaustion

3.3 3.2 3.0

1.1 1.4 0.9

Additionally, ANOVA (see Table 4) was conducted to explore the relationship between type of employment contract and employment in different departments concerning: 1. work-related stress 2. emotional exhaustion 3. job satisfaction.

4.2.1. Work-related stress Several job and personal characteristics after the restructuring were found to be significantly related to work-related stress. The results of the regression indicated that higher work-related stress was related with higher emotional work demands (b = 0.62, p < 0.001), higher quantitative work demands (b = 0.28, p < 0.001) and higher job insecurity, (b = 0.21, p < 0.05). The overall model fit was R2 = 0.920. Differences concerning work-related stress according to employment contract were also investigated [F(2, 1375) = 12.182, p < 0.001]. Employees with permanent (m = 3.3, sd = 1.32) or open-ended (m = 3.2, sd = 1.39) employment contracts reported statistically significantly higher work-related stress than employees with fixed-term employment contracts (m = 2.7, sd = 1.41). Statistically significant differences were found in the average work-related stress scores across different departments of the municipalities for employees (excluding supervisors) [F(7, 1189) = 5.98, p < 0.001], with employees in urban planning services reporting the highest levels of work-related stress (m = 3.47, sd = 1.20).

The average scores calculated include only those with positive answers. Refers to supervisors (N = 123).

Support from colleagues or direct supervisor was reported ‘‘sometimes‘‘ to ”often”. They equally disagree/agree that considering their efforts and achievements, their job promotion prospects are adequate. On the average they rather disagree on the adequacy of their salary/income, considering their efforts and achievements. The overall average job satisfaction shows that the respondents are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied with their present work. Regarding work-related stress, the majority reported that on average they feel this kind of stress as ‘‘rather much”. Additionally, emotional exhaustion was reported on average ‘‘sometimes”.

4.2.2. Emotional exhaustion The multiple regression indicated that higher emotional exhaustion was related to higher quantitative demands (b = 0.30, p < 0.001), higher emotional demands (b = 0.43, p < 0.001), higher job insecurity (b = 0.19, p < 0.001), more unfair treatment during change (perceived overall justice during change b = 0.15, p < 0.01), lower role clarity and higher role conflict (b = 0.15, p < 0.001). The overall model fit was R2 = 0.950. Regarding emotional exhaustion and employment contract, it was noted that employees with fixed-term employment contracts (m = 2.52, sd = 0.86) reported the least emotional exhaustion, followed by open-ended contracts (m = 2.89, sd = 0.93) and permanent position contracts (m = 3.06, sd = 0.93). Statistically

4.2. The effects of restructuring Stepwise, multiple regression (see Table 3) was used to investigate the relationship between restructuring, job insecurity and job characteristics with: 1. work-related stress 2. emotional exhaustion 3. job satisfaction.

Table 3 Summary of regression analysis for factors influencing work-related stress, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction (N = 1592). Work-related stress

Magnitude/significance of change Job insecurity Information and support from manager Information and support from direct supervisor Perceived overall justice during change Participation and involvement Quantitative demands Emotional demands Influence at work Role clarity and role conflicts Support Effort reward imbalance R2

Emotional exhaustion

Job satisfaction

B

SE B

Beta

B

SE B

Beta

0.21**

0.08

0.17

0.19***

0.06

0.18

0.15**

0.06

0.14

0.07 0.06

0.49 0.49

***

0.28 0.62***

0.09 0.09

0.30 0.63

***

0.30 0.43*** 0.15***

0.920

0.950

0.05

0.16

B

SE B

0.11***

0.05

Beta

0.12

0.10***

0.03

0.10

0.40*** 0.961

0.07

0.33

The non shaded areas stand for the independent variables of the model tested. p < 0.05. *** p < 0.001. ** p < 0.01.

*

Please cite this article in press as: Koukoulaki, T., et al. Restructuring seriously damages well-being of workers: The case of the restructuring programme in local administration in Greece. Safety Sci. (2017), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2017.06.002

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T. Koukoulaki et al. / Safety Science xxx (2017) xxx–xxx Table 4 Summary of ANOVA results for average work-related stress, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction among different departments. Work-related stress

Emotional exhaustion

Employees 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Administrative services Financial services Technical services Environmental services Urban planning services Citizens’ service centres Programming services Other services

Mean 3.4 3.3 3.3 3.0 3.5 3.3 2.5 2.8

(*7, *8) (*8) (*8) (*8) (*1, *5) (*1, *2, *3, *5)

286 160 178 224 97 34 28 190

3.04 3.11 2.83 2.90 3.31 3.35 2.49 2.64

(*8) (7, *8) (*5) (*5) (*3, *4, *7, *8) (*7, *8) (*2, *5, *6, *8) (*1, *2, *5, *6)

Job satisfaction n

Mean

n

289 162 179 227 96 34 28 190

3.34 (*5) 3.21 (*8) 3.19 (*8) 3.36 (*5) 2.88 (*1, *4) 3.66 (*5) 3.67 (*5) 3.53(*2, *3, *5)

284 157 171 219 94 35 27 188

Numbers indicate which groups differ significantly from another group. p < 0.001. ** p < 0.01. * p < 0.05. ***

significant differences were found across all three groups [F(2, 1386) = 24.74, p < 0.001]. The highest emotional exhaustion [F(7, 1197) = 9.021, p < 0.001] was reported by employees in the citizens’ service centres (m = 3.35, sd = 0.88), whereas the lowest was reported by the programming services (m = 2.49, sd = 0.87). 4.2.3. Job satisfaction Several factors under investigation seem to be influential regarding job satisfaction. Job satisfaction increased when emotional demands decreased (b = 0.11, p < 0.001), role clarity increased and role conflict decreased (b = 0.10, p < 0.001), and effort-reward balance increased (b = 0.40, p < 0.001). The overall model fit is R2 = 0.941. Employees with fixed-term employment contracts (m = 3.76, sd = 1.00) reported the highest levels of job satisfaction compared with permanent (m = 3.14, sd = 1.11) and open-ended (m = 3.58, sd = 1.12) contract employees. As a matter of fact, permanent employees had the lowest job satisfaction among the three groups [F(2, 1352) = 34.67, p < 0.001]. There was a statistically significant difference in the reported job satisfaction among departments [F(7, 1167) = 4.39, p < 0.001] only concerning employees. More specifically, employees in the urban planning department reported less job satisfaction (m = 2.88, sd = 1.11) compared to employees of several other departments, whereas the highest job satisfaction was reported by the employees in the programming departments (m = 3.64, sd = 0.83). 5. Discussion The aim of this study was to assess the impact of Kallikratis restructuring on employee well-being (namely on work-related stress, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction). It was also intended to increase the current knowledge on the role of job characteristics (psychosocial factors) by examining how restructuring affects job characteristics and how changes in job characteristics are associated with employee mental well-being. This study is unique in terms of measuring the degree of restructuring. A recent literature review (de Jong et al., 2016) revealed a lack of such studies based on self-reported measures. The study findings confirm earlier studies on the negative impact of restructuring on well-being of employees. However, the magnitude of change was not found to be directly related to employee well-being, whereas the restructuring effects on job and other characteristics were. The study found that Kallikratis restructuring increased job demands (quantitative and emotional) of employees in Greek municipalities. Job demands and job insecurity were found to be positively related to work-related stress and emotional

exhaustion. Geuskens et al. (2012) found that job insecurity partly explained the impact of restructuring on health and emotional exhaustion. Employee job satisfaction was found to be negatively influenced by emotional demands and positively by role clarity, support from colleagues and supervisors, and effort-reward balance. Of all the factors related to the process of change itself (including attitudes), only unfair treatment during change was positively related to emotional exhaustion. In this study neither information nor support from managers during change, nor participation and involvement of employees in the restructuring process were found to have an impact on their well-being. These findings are contrary to those of other studies where information and communication during change were found to influence positively psychological well-being (e.g. Gonipath and Becker, 2000; Jimmieson et al., 2004; Korunka et al., 2003; Loretto et al., 2010). This can be attributed to the fact that the Kallikratis restructuring process was centrally designed by the government. Information and communication on the details of the programme were scarce also for managers and sometimes even for mayors. Therefore, such information and communication might not have been anticipated by employees. This study also investigated differences in the impact of restructuring on potentially vulnerable groups of employees during the process. Differences were identified between employees with different employment contracts, different departments and different hierarchy levels. More specifically, employees with permanent or open-ended employment contracts reported higher levels of work-related stress and emotional exhaustion than employees with fixed-term employment contracts. They also reported the lowest levels of job satisfaction. This may be attributed to the workload of these employees during and after restructuring. Permanent employees were also found to be more negatively affected compared to temporary employees in a prospective study of Vahtera et al. (2004). Employees in urban planning services reported the highest levels of work-related stress and the lowest levels of job satisfaction. This is a service where expected changes were not clear and there were rumors for outsourcing. The highest levels of emotional exhaustion were reported by employees in the citizens’ service centres, a front-office service with direct contact with the citizens. This is an expected finding in line with several other studies showing employees in direct contact with clients to report more emotional exhaustion (e.g. Dormann and Zapf, 2004). Differences in well-being across departments were only significant for employees and not for supervisors. The study found that restructuring in local government influenced almost all psychosocial factors examined. The most significant change restructuring brought about was downsizing and

Please cite this article in press as: Koukoulaki, T., et al. Restructuring seriously damages well-being of workers: The case of the restructuring programme in local administration in Greece. Safety Sci. (2017), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2017.06.002

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intensification of work. The latter influences work at all levels. Indeed, an extended literature review (De Jong et al., 2016) found negative effects on worker well-being regardless of the downsizing result of restructuring. Following this study, guidelines for preventing risks during restructuring were developed and published which included primary and secondary prevention recommendations before and during restructuring. Primarily, during restructuring design –if it cannot be avoided- potential effects of the new structure on work organisation should be studied, aiming at designing tasks with role clarity, and appropriate workload and task in order to prevent negative effects on employee well-being. Secondary prevention measures can contribute to psychosocial risk reduction and injustice prevention. Such measures include justice during the process, transparency, communication, cooperation and social dialogue. This study also contributed to policy making during restructuring in Greece. Effects of organisational restructuring were included in the proposal of the National Strategy for Occupational Health & Safety signed by the social partners in Greece (Appendix of the National General Collective Agreement, 2017). The study findings and guidelines were presented and distributed in public and private organisations undergoing restructuring in Greece during conferences and meetings organised by Trade Unions, Occupational Prevention & Preventive Services, etc. (e.g. National Gas, Water Supply and Sewerage Company, Telecommunications, etc.). These recommendations are consistent with key suggestions for promoting mental health in Europe (Leka et al., 2014). The content (coverage and terminology) of Council Directive 89/391/EEC should be revised to include clear reference to psychosocial risks and mental health in the workplace including also the effects of restructuring. Interpretative documents of Council Directive 89/391/EEC that are required to clarify legal requirements for employers and other key stakeholders in Europe should include this aspect. Several European Directives have provided a minimum degree of protection for employees threatened by restructuring (Directive 98/59/EC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to collective redundancies; Directive 2001/23/EC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the safeguarding of employees’ rights in the event of transfers of undertakings, businesses or parts of undertakings or businesses; and Directive 2008/94/EC on the protection of employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer (repealing Directive 2002/74/EC and Council Directive 80/987/EEC), Directive 2012/30/EU) (Leka et al., 2014). On November 2016, the European Commission proposed a Directive on preventive restructuring frameworks, second chance and measures to increase the efficiency of restructuring, insolvency and discharge procedures, amending Directive 2012/30/EU. The European Trade Union Confederation has expressed some concerns on whether this Directive safeguards workers’ jobs and rights. The introduction of an EU framework on insolvency rules was only welcome to the extent that it seeks to ensure that workers are properly protected (ETUC, 2016). The proposal is pending to be adopted by the Council and the Parliament. In terms of research, more longitudinal studies are needed to test the effects of restructuring over time. Currently, the public sector in Greece is undergoing tremendous changes (privatisation, extended outsourcing, significant salary reductions, and reduction of workforce through less replacements of retired employees). Therefore, studies on the effects of repeated and prolonged restructuring on employee well-being are required. Limitations of the study include its cross-sectional nature and self-reported collection of data. It was not possible to include a control group with employees not exposed to restructuring because, as mentioned earlier, all municipalities were going

through the restructuring process. On the other hand, a key strength of the study is the representative and relatively large size of the sample included. 6. Conclusions The findings of this study confirm the potential negative impact of restructuring on well-being of employees. Job characteristics or psychosocial factors played a predominant role in this relationship for the Kallikratis restructuring. Increased job demands were associated to increased stress and emotional exhaustion. Differences were identified between employees according to employment contract type and department. Job insecurity or threat of job loss was also found to be negatively related to the well-being of employees. Variables related to the perception of the restructuring process, such as perceived justice, decreased emotional exhaustion. This study contributed to policy making in Greece. More longitudinal research is needed to investigate restructuring changes and effects on well-being over time. Also studies on the effects of repeated and prolonged restructuring are required. Acknowledgments This study was carried out in the context of the ‘‘Hygeia in Kallikratis” project that aimed at safeguarding health and safety during and after the transposition to the new system. The project was financed by European Commission-DG EMPL/F.3 Programme Progress (VP/2010/013 under the budget heading 04.04.01.03, Restructuring, well-being at work and financial participation). The authors are grateful to the municipalities that participated in the study and the Panhellenic Municipal Workers’ Federation (POE-OTA) for its support. References Bohle, P., Quinlan, M., Mayhew, C., 2001. The health and safety effects of job insecurity: an evaluation of the evidence. Econ. Labour Relat. Rev. 12, 32–60. Bovey, W., Hede, A., 2001. Resistance to organizational change: the role of cognitive and affective process. Leadersh. Organ. Dev. J. 22, 372–382. Cartwright, S., Tytherleigh, M., Robertson, S., 2007. Are mergers always stressful? Some evidence from higher education sector. Eur. J. Work Org. Psychol. 16 (4), 456–478. de Jong, T., Wiezer, N., de Weerd, M., Nielsen, K., Mattila-Holappa, P., Mockallo, Z., 2016. The impact of restructuring on employee well-being: a systematic review of longitudinal studies. Work Stress. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/ 02678373.2015.1136710. De Witte, H., 2005. Job insecurity: review of the international literature on definitions, prevalence, antecedents and consequences. J. Ind. Psychol. 31 (4), 1– 6. Dormann, C., Zapf, D., 2004. Customer-related social stressors and burnout. J. Occup. Health Psychol. 9 (1), 61–82. ETUC, 2016a. ETUC Position on Protecting Workers in the context of the Commission Proposal for a Directive on Preventive Restructuring, Second Chance, Insolvency and Discharge Procedures. ETUC, 2016b. Revisiting restructuring, anticipation of change and workers participation in a digitalised world, Report to the ETUC. Eurofound, 2016. ERM Annual Report 2016: Globalisation Slowdown? Recent Evidence of Offshoring and Reshoring in Europe. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg. Eurofound, 2012. ERM Report 2012 – After Restructuring: Labour Markets, Working Conditions and Life Satisfaction. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg. Ferrie, J.E., Westerlund, H., Virtanen, M., Vahtera, J., Kivimäki, M., 2008. Flexible labor markets and employee health. Scand. J. Work Environ. Health 6, 98–110. Geuskens, G.A., Koppes, L.L.J., van den Bossche, S.N.J., Joling, C.I., 2012. Enterprise restructuring and the health of employees: a cohort study. J. Occup. Environ. Med. 54 (1), 4–9. Gopinath, C., Becker, T.E., 2000. Communication, procedural justice, and employee attitudes: relationships under conditions of divestiture. J. Manage. 26 (1), 63– 83. Hazakis, K., Ioannidis, P., 2014. From Kapodistrias to Kallikrates: intraregional cooperation and local governments institutional reforms in eastern macedonia and Thrace. Int. J. Glob. Trade Markets 7 (4), 285–299. http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1504/IJTGM.2014.067254.

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Please cite this article in press as: Koukoulaki, T., et al. Restructuring seriously damages well-being of workers: The case of the restructuring programme in local administration in Greece. Safety Sci. (2017), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2017.06.002